


A Red, Red Rose

by grangerweasleys



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Angst, Bisexual Scorpius, Chronological, Eventual Smut, F/M, Family, Family Issues, Fluff, Marriage, Mental Health Issues, One Shot Collection, legacy issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-10
Updated: 2017-01-13
Packaged: 2018-08-14 03:55:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 29
Words: 59,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7997680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grangerweasleys/pseuds/grangerweasleys
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On the morning of September 1st, there were three things that eleven year old Rose Granger-Weasley was certain of: </p><p>Firstly, that Scorpius Malfoy was to be avoided.<br/>Secondly, she was a Granger-Weasley and this meant that she needed to achieve greatness.<br/>Thirdly, Albus would be in Gryffindor and her best friend at Hogwarts.</p><p>By November 1st of her fourth year, Rose was certain of none of these things.</p><p>Moments in the life of Rose Granger-Weasley, from birth to adulthood. Cursed Child compliant. Mentions moments from the play on stage that aren't in the script.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Rose Thorned

**Author's Note:**

> After seeing Cursed Child on September 1st, I was inspired by how complex Rose is as a character. There are many details that the script doesn't include and it definitely doesn't do her justice. At the beginning, she's a very hyper, loveable and excited child - I've tried to reflect that here, the way she is on stage.

_O my Luve's like a red, red rose,_  
_That's newly sprung in June:_  
_O my Luve's like the melodie,_  
_That's sweetly play'd in tune._  
From ‘A Red, Red Rose’ by Robert Burns (1794)

Rose Granger-Weasley was born on a bright morning in June. Her mother burst into tears when she heard her little wail, falling back against her pillow as sweat and tears intermingled on her face. Her father, overwhelmed, rushed in to kiss his wife’s forehead before turning to look at his newborn daughter. The sight of her — red, wailing and covered in blood and mess, made him whimper. He let his tears fall freely.

“Congratulations Mr Weasley and Ms. Granger, you have a lovely baby girl,” their healer said. She looked over at Ron and smiled. “Would you like to come and cut the cord?”

Ron nodded, picking up his wand and leaning over to give his wife another kiss. He walked over to his daughter, dazed and awed. She was still wailing as her father cut her cord; the healer then flicked her wand, cleaning up the mess on the baby’s skin and leaving her swaddled in a light yellow blanket. The healer handed the baby to Ron, who gazed down at her as if he were dreaming.

“She’s beautiful, Hermione,” Ron finally said, looking up at his wife. Anxiously, and very carefully, he slowly walked over to her bed. He transferred his daughter over to Hermione, refusing to let her go until she was securely in Hermione’s arms.

“Oh Ron! She is, she really is,” Hermione sobbed, caressing her daughter’s cheek. Her wails began to quieten as she felt the warm touch of her mother’s chest. “Hello, my lovely little… we haven’t chosen a name for her yet, Ron!”

“Oh, right, yeah, we haven’t, have we?” Ron replied, now sitting on the bed and gently stroking his daughter’s tiny fingers. “Well, if it’s any comfort — no matter what we choose, Rita Skeeter and the rest of the public will be too busy focusing on Harry and Ginny’s unborn son’s name. Albus Severus.”

“Ron!” Hermione scolded, glaring up at him. “I told you not to poke fun at an unborn baby’s name! Especially in front of… in front of…” Hermione smiled softly at him before letting her eyes wander around the room.

“It’s not as if she can understand me!” Ron objected. “But anyway - yes, you’re right, we need to choose a name.”

Ron’s eyes followed Hermione’s; she was gazing out of the window at the morning sun rising. She appeared thoughtful, pondering the names that she and Ron had already came up with. On the windowsill sat a large blue vase where a mixture of white and red roses sat within; her gaze turned to them.

“Rose,” Hermione said gently. “Rose Granger-Weasley.”

Ron looked at her, his eyebrows rising slightly. She removed her gaze from the window and met his.

“If you don’t like it, we can think of another,” Hermione said. She looked back down at her daughter. Rose. Rose Granger-Weasley. It fits, Hermione thought.

“Rose,” Ron repeated. “I like it. Roses are beautiful, after all. Just like her.”

“It doesn’t come with any weight either,” Hermione replied. “She’ll always be a Granger-Weasley but maybe… maybe it will be easier for her if she isn’t named after someone.” Hermione looked down at her daughter and cooed at her. “Hello, my little Rose.”

* * *

Despite her parent’s efforts in calling her Rose, their little girl was raised with the overwhelming knowledge of the significance of being a Granger-Weasley.

It creeped into every area and aspect of her life. From the looks of admiration that she got when she went out with her parents or any member of the Weasley family. Strangers would come up to her and ruffle her hair. ‘She’ll grow up to be as great as her mother and father,’ they would say. Rose would beam back at them. She became determined to reach that greatness.

Her cousin, Albus, who was three months her junior, was the opposite. These comments made him blush furiously and tense up. Once, when they were both seven, he burst into tears in Diagon Alley when someone said that he ‘had his father’s greatness in his eyes.’

“I don’t know why you’re crying, Al!” Rose had said as she patted his back. “You should be proud!”

Despite this difference between the cousins, their closeness stuck throughout their childhood. They were the closest in age and often inseparable.

They comforted each other on the night before they went to Hogwarts at the Burrow. It was a Weasley family tradition to gather for dinner if family members were about to embark upon first year. James was continuing to relentlessly tease Albus about being in Slytherin, pushing Albus to an extreme amount of anxiety.

After dinner, Rose took him aside and hugged him. She had been grinning all night, unable to conceal or contain her excitement about starting Hogwarts.

“Oh Al!” She squealed, squeezing her grip of him. “It’s going to be great, don’t worry! You’re going to be in Gryffindor with me and we’re going to best friends — just like our parents! And we’re going to be just as great as them, I promise! Ahh, I’m so excited!” She gave another squeal and let go of cousin, grinning at him. “It’s going to be perfect!”

During the morning after their sorting, as Rose scowled over at the Slytherin table where her cousin sat with Scorpius Malfoy (who, to Rose’s utter embarrassment, noticed her and waved with a dreamy look in his eyes), she realised that she had been partly correct.

They were, to an extent, just like their parents. Every year at Hogwarts, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were met with unexpectedly unpleasant trials.

As Scorpius lowered his hand, disheartened, and turned back to talk to Albus, Rose glared back down at her untouched eggs.

_Yes, this is extremely unexpected and unpleasant._

 


	2. Scorpius Malfoy

Growing up, Rose had some awareness of who her parents were or, rather, how they were significant.

While she was an observant child, you didn’t need to be observant to notice the extent and number of looks that her parents attracted. When she asked her parents, her dad would laugh and say that his jokes were world famous; her mother responding that her work at the ministry was reported in _The Prophet_.

As Rose became older, she began to truly understand her parent’s visibility. The Wars. The deaths. The scars. Blood-Status.

_Mudblood._

It was a word that made her feel physically sick; a slur, once used to disgrace and bully her mother. Her intelligent, beautiful, loving mother. Who was constantly being praised for her reforms at the Ministry.

Rose knew her place in the world — a world where she could achieve whatever she wanted. A world where being the daughter of a ‘Bloodtraitor’ and ‘Mudblood’ would never restrict her or put her in danger. She could flourish and thrive in this world. Her ambition was unlimited and unrestricted.

Rose was ten years old when she first heard of the Malfoy family.

She had known about Death-Eaters, of course, and how the reformed ones still lived among them. Among her.

It made her uneasy. People that had wanted her mother and father dead; had called her mother that word. Walking around her. Breathing the same air as her. She knew that some had changed and, yet, she still couldn’t shake off the uncomfortableness that invaded her mind whenever her thoughts wandered to dark marks and slurs.

The Malfoys, however, immediately nestled themselves in a special place within her dislike.

She was having dinner at the Burrow when they were first brought up. Molly and Fred were starting Hogwarts the next day and the dinner-time discussion eventually turned to Rose and Albus, who would be in Molly and Fred’s position next year.

“They’ll be in the same year as Draco Malfoy’s son, won’t they?” George had asked Ron.

Ron nodded, his face turning sour.

“Unfortunately.”

Unfortunately? Rose thought.

“Ron!” Hermione exclaimed. “Just because we didn’t like Draco at school doesn’t mean that Rose and Albus need to dislike his son!”

“Well if he even is his son, Hermione.”

“RON!”

A sudden and disturbed silence wrapped itself around the table; the adults stopped their chatter and looked down at their plates. The children, however, confused and in the dark, looked at each other and then attempted to catch their parents’s attentions. James was eagerly pulling on his mum’s blouse as Lily tapped on her dad’s shoulder, boosting herself up so that she could whisper in his ear. Albus and Rose looked at each other, perplexed.

It was Nana Weasley who eventually broke the silence, rising from her seat with a forced smile.

“Dessert, anyone?!”

* * *

Rose struggled to sleep when she returned home that night.

Thoughts about Draco Malfoy and his son penetrated every area of her mind. At midnight, just as she was finally managing to drift off, she heard her mother and father arguing in the kitchen. Carefully and quietly, she tip-toed out of bed to the staircase bannister.

“Ron, really, I work for the Ministry. I can’t be engaging in the silly fear-mongering and rumours! And neither can you,” Rose heard her mother say, her voice agitated.

“It was just a joke, Hermione!” Her father protested. “Of course I don’t really believe that he’s… you know… his son. It’s just funny, that’s all.”

His son?

“Funny?” Her mother repeated, her voice rising. ‘There’s nothing funny about Scorpius Malfoy being rumoured as the son of Voldemort!”

Rose slammed her hand against her mouth to prevent her gasp from reaching her parents.

The son of Voldemort!

“Well, not when you put it like that. I just mean with Draco. That he couldn’t, you know…” Ron stopped in the way that she and Hugo would when her mother was giving them into trouble. “He used to call you some awful things, Hermione. _Mudblood_. I don’t care if he changed sides. He still was horrible to you - and me! While I’m thankful for his mother risking her life for her prat Death-Eater son, he’s never apologised to you or me.”

Mudblood!

Rose refused to hear anything else. She got up from where she was sitting and, as quietly as she could, jogged back to her room and threw herself under her covers. A picture formed in her head of Scorpius Malfoy — she saw him as a bully, just like his father. Rose didn’t believe that he was the son of Voldemort. That was impossible. What was possible, however, was that this boy would be raised to be just like his father. His father who had called her mum that word. His father who had never apologised. Her blood began to boil as she thought of them, father and son.

Even if he isn’t the son of Voldemort, Rose thought, the rumours must be inspired by something. He must be awful and nasty. How could the rumours begin in any other way?

At that moment, ten year old Rose firmly decided that she disliked Scorpius Malfoy and, for her own sake, would be staying well away from him.

* * *

 

While Rose’s initial impression of Scorpius had been based on a decisive prejudice, it didn’t grow from stupidity.

It became very clear to Rose that Scorpius, perhaps, wasn’t like his bullying father. He had never called her that word and, in fact, seemed overly fond of Rose.

This didn’t stop her dislike.

While Rose struggled to admit it to herself, the root of her hatred for Scorpius was his friendship with Albus.

Every breakfast, lunch and dinner, she would watch them and scowl.

“Have you not spoken to him, James?” Rose asked her cousin one morning, unable to conceal the irritated twang in her voice at the sight. “Not told him to make other friends that aren’t causing him to be so unpopular?”

James shrugged. “Nothing I can do about it, Rose,” he replied. “His decision. He said you left them that day on September 1st, by the way. I don’t know why you’re so sour. It was your decision.”

Rose opened her mouth to reply but was distracted by Scorpius noticing Rose looking in their direction. He waved at her eagerly and Rose snapped her eyes away, folding her arms and huffing.

James waved back for her at Scorpius, laughing loudly.“Maybe you should take one for the team and steal Scorpius away from Albus. I don’t think Scorpius would complain. You could have Voldy’s little noseless grandchildren!” 

  
“Oh shut up, James!”


	3. Albus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> On stage, Rose doesn't join in with the teasing nor does she laugh at the jokes. The scene about her stopping them from going after Albus with their wands does happen on stage (I can't remember if the whole wand-under-floor scene is in the script; it's pretty much a transition scene without clear dialogue).

She would watch as the other children teased Albus. She did not laugh, but she did not stop them either.

The only time she did was when the other children had turned their wands on Albus during a class. He had gotten his wand stuck under a floorboard during a lesson. She watched, panicked, as her classmates bundled together with their wands before getting ready to turn on Albus.

“No, don’t!” She suddenly protested, rushing forward and trying to stop them. They ignored her and rushed at her cousin, leaving him on the floor and mortified.

Her attempt went unnoticed by Albus.

It doesn’t matter, she thought that night before she drifted off to sleep. It wasn’t good enough anyway.

* * *

 

Rose didn’t sleep at all during the entire time that Albus first went missing.

She only cried and begged her mum and Professor McGonagall, in vain, to let her join in with the search. Her feelings towards Scorpius were anger — she convinced herself that he was the one who had put Albus in danger. She resented him for what he had done and thought of how she would confront him and what she would say.

And then suddenly, bizarrely, Albus had been found and Rose felt a disorientated. As if she had missed something. More than something — days, maybe weeks. She felt as if she had memory loss at first; her recent memories going blurry in her head. They took hours to fully come back to her but, by then, she understood.

Rose hadn’t existed.

It was mortifying, finding out in the way that she did. She listened in with other students and James as Scorpius and Albus were in Professor McGonagall’s office; she had initially been anticipating with glee with what she would hear. Her idiotic cousin and his awful best friend would surely be expelled from Hogwarts. They deserve it, Rose thought. Meddling with time!

But what she heard had brought her no pleasure.

She, Rose Granger-Weasley, had ceased to exist. Her life, for the first time, suddenly seemed fragile. She felt vulnerable and was painfully aware of her vulnerability.

Not only did she cease to exist, so did her brother and, eventually, her cousins. The children of Mudbloods, Blood-Traitors and Harry Potter. The types of people who were incompatible with the society that Voldemort had wanted and, in this alternative world, succeeded in achieving.

Her life — as the daughter of a Mudbood and Blood-Traitor — was a painfully fragile one. Rose was no fool; she knew that some Wizards still believed in that ideology. Who didn’t want her mother to become Minister for Magic because she was Muggleborn. Who didn’t want Wizards like her and others to flourish and grow in society.

But Scorpius did.

She listened in to the gossip, numb and in a state of disbelief.

Scorpius Malfoy had scarified his pure-blooded, popular position in an alternative world for people like her.

Rose thought back to when she left Scorpius’s compartment on the train that day, many years ago now. Her decision was not only formed out of prejudice but a burning desire to prove herself and to be liked. She wanted to be popular — to be the liked daughter of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. Rose had seen the level of unpopularity that Albus had sunk to and the thought of being in his position horrified her. Rose couldn’t ever be the unlikable and unpopular daughter of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.

But Scorpius, a boy she had once thought to be nothing more than a caricature of his father in his youth, didn’t care about his own popularity or that Polly Chapman fancied him. There were more important things to Scorpius, things that Scorpius was willing to die for. People like her. Daughters of Mudbloods and Blood-Traitors.

* * *

“Rose! There you are!” Scorpius Malfoy shouted from across the Potion’s classroom. He quickly began to make his way over her, pushing through the crowds of rowdy students. “Did you miss me?”

“Miss you?”

“Ah, of course, you were gone too,” Scorpius said. “But you’re back now!”

“Look, Breadhead…”

Before Rose could process what he was attempting to do, Scorpius pulled her into an awkward hug. He squeezed her tight while she stood awkwardly rigid and straight, her eyes bulging as the class gawked.

“Ow!” Scorpius jumped back, feeling the full force of Rose kicking his shin. “But you looked so glad to see me!”

“Glad?!” Rose said, her face suddenly feeling warm. “Because of you and my cousin, I didn’t exist!”

“But you’re back now!” Scorpius protested. “I’m sorry, Rose, I really am. If we knew - If I knew, I wouldn’t have done it, honestly! I got you back though! Look — you’re really here!” He reached over and awkwardly pressed his hand on her cheek to prove his point. She quickly slapped it away.  
  


* * *

  
 The second time that Albus went missing, Rose had been in hysterics and was delirious with rage.

Her brother, cousins, aunts, and uncles had all gathered together at the Burrow when they heard the news that time could be limited. They could all die. And their fate rested on Albus Severus Potter and Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy.

“I hate him! I hate him so much!” Rose screamed, her face a raw red and tear-stained. “He’s put us all in this - this - this fucking mess!”

It was the first time that Rose had ever swore.

“Rose!” Lily gasped. They were crowded in Ginny’s old bedroom — Rose, Lily, James, Hugo, and Dominque. James and Dominque were solemn, unable to move their eyes from the floor. Hugo and Lily were sobbing, hugging each other fiercely.

“Your stupid brother has done this Lily! We’re all - we’re all — we’re all going to die because of your stupid fucking brother!”

“Hey!” James suddenly snapped, bolting up. Dominique rose with him, placing her hand on his shoulder. “He’s not - he’s not stupid! You don’t know what he’s going through right now, Rose! He’s going to die too with us, you know! He didn’t want this!”

“I don’t fucking care,” Rose snapped, her fists clenched. “I don’t care what he wanted right now. I just care about what he’s done!”

“Maybe if you hadn’t ditched him and left him with Scorpius, he wouldn’t be in this mess. You should have been his friend, Rose!”

Rose suddenly lunged at James, tackling him to the ground. She reached for her wand, knowing that the Ministry had bigger issues than under-age magic at this moment.

“Rose, stop!” Dominique yelled as Lily began to wail. She tried to grab the brawling cousins to no avail until a horrified Arthur rushed into the room having heard the noise.

It took Arthur five minutes and the assistance of Teddy, Fleur, and Bill to remove the cousins from each other. They stood up and glared at each other, breathing heavily.

“You left him too, you know,” Rose hissed. “And started his stupid fears about Slytherin. We both did it — we both weren’t there for him.”

James stared at her, his face simultaneously softening and breaking as his breathing evened out.

‘When we — if we — if we’re still alive by the end of this,” James began, stopping as Lily wailed out at his words. He moved towards Lily and fiercly took her into his arms. “We need to apologise to him. We need to.”

Rose stared back at him as her chest still visibly heaved in and out, her breaths loud and heavy. Finally, Rose nodded. “We do,” she said to James.

Silently, she also thought about the other boy that she owed an apology to.

* * *

“Rose! Rose! Rose!”

The sound of Scorpius Malfoy calling her made Rose stop. Normally (as in one month ago), Rose would have ignored his useless badgering and walked on.

But that was before.

Before she had ceased to exist and before Scorpius was a hero in an another world. The Scorpion King.

Rose stopped and turned around, warily staring at him as he clumsily charged towards the busy corridor to her. Albus followed, a grin on his face.

“Scorpius,” Rose said. “Are you alright? You seem… flustered.”

“No, but I will be soon!” Scorpius said, grinning at her.

Rose looked at Albus and raised her eyebrows. “Is Scorpius alright, Albus?”

Albus barked out a laugh, folding his arms. “You’ll see,” he said. “Go on Scorpius, ask her.”

Ask her?

Oh no.

“Rose Granger-Weasley, I am here to ask you out on a date,” Scorpius said, giving a comical bow to her. “You see, Rose, my time travelling adventures have made me a new man. Scorpius the Dreadless! Scorpius the Unanxious! And here I am, the new Scorpius, asking you out on a date. Please go on a date with me, Rose.”

The stares of the busy hallway seemed to melt around her; only Albus, Scorpius and herself now existed.

“No,” she said. To her surprise, his face did not fall. His optimism was limitless. “I don’t think we’ve ever spoken for more than five minutes since we met, Scorpius. I can’t go on a date with you.”

“Do you want me to stay for three minutes? That’ll be five then.”

Albus looked like he was in pain watching Scorpius’s efforts. He placed his hand on Scorpius’s shoulder, motioning his neck for them to go. “C’mon, mate, you’ve got your answer.”

Rose sighed and looked Scorpius dead in the eyes. She felt pity towards him; this had been going on for years.

“I’m late for lunch,” Rose said. “You go and enjoy being back in the present, ok?”

She gave him one last look of pity before turning and flouncing down the corridor, fiercely glaring at those who stared at her.

When she found the boys five minutes later, she was dismayed to see Scorpius nearly falling down the stairs at the sight of her. She didn’t want things to be awkward between them — deep down, she knew that she needed to apologise and an awkward, flailing Scorpius did not make things any easier.

But here she was — a supposedly bold and brave Gryffindor, unable to properly repent for her sins.

When she called him ‘Scorpion King’, the words had slipped out. She knew what that nick-name represented — compared to when she used to call him ‘Bread-Head’.

She hadn’t realised that she had smiled at him either before she walked away, or that the smile didn’t remove itself from her face until five minutes later.


	4. Apology

“Rose! Hey Rose!”

“I don’t understand how he can save us all from eternal doom with Potter,” Roses’s friend Thaminah began, turning to look at an eager Scorpius Malfoy waddling towards them. “And, yet, not get the hint from you.”

“Ha,” replied Rose as she too watched Scorpius. She lifted her hand up and gave him an awkward little wave. “He hasn’t asked me out again, though.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Thaminah replied, grabbing onto Rose’s arm. “He’s annoying you. Lets go.” She began to pull Rose away from the students filing out of the Great Hall.

Rose continued to watch as Scorpius pushed through the crowds in order to get to her. She felt Thaminah tugging on her arm but ignored it, standing firmly in the place where they had stopped.

“Rose?” Thaminah said, clearing her throat. “Don’t you want to come and sit outside with us all?”

“Hi Rose!” Scorpius said before Rose had a chance to reply. It was now the June after his adventure with time travel. He’d grown a few inches taller and Rose had noticed that he now wore his hair differently. His white school-shirt was currently buttoned down at the top, with the sleeves messily rolled up. Rose felt a small jolt of warmness quietly work its way through her at the sight.

“Hello Scorpius,” Rose said, giving him a small smile. “I take it that you found the exam alright?”

“Alright? I loved it! Especially that question on the Goblin Rebellion of 1617. That’s always been my favourite rebellion to read about,” Scorpius replied, beaming at her. “I could have written all day on it.”

“I’m glad you found it alright, Scorpius,” Thaminah said curtly. “But Rose and I were just on our way outside to sit with our friends. You should find Albus and enjoy the nice weather before you need to revise again.”

“Ah, I see! I’ll let you go on then, Rose -”

“No it’s fine, Thaminah,” Rose said quickly, interrupting him. “Go on without me. I need to check with Scorpius to see if I wrote the correct answer to question twelve.”

“Rose, that one was about the tactics of Dumbledore’s Army. Both of your parents were in it.”

“Double checking never hurt anyone,” Rose said softly, smiling at her friend. “I’ll meet you out there later, alright?”

Thaminah looked at Rose, trying to understand her. She eventually gave up, swallowing uncomfortably and nodding at her.

“Alright,” she said. “Just don’t waste the nice day before it rains again.”

Rose gave her a reassuring smile as she turned and walked off, checking over her shoulder every few paces to examine Rose and Scorpius.

“Question twelve was another favourite of mine. I think I’ve read at least twelve books on Dumbledore’s Army. I haven’t read Rita Skeeter’s though since she likes being so awful about everyone. What did you write for number twelve?”

“I can’t remember.”

“But I thought —”

“How are you, Scorpius?”

“How - how am I? I’m great! How are you?”

Rose stared at him, biting her lip nervously.

“Are you alright Rose? Is it the heat?”

“Scorpius, do you want to take a walk by the lake with me?” Rose said suddenly, fidgeting with her sweaty palms.

“With you?” Scorpius replied, gaping. “Of course! I know the perfect spot! I used to go there and sit when my…” His voice trailed off as he began to redden.

Rose noticed the sudden uncomfortableness and pain in his voice; she responded with a warm smile, motioning for them to move.

“Come on,” she said. “Show me the way.”

* * *

“Seeing Bathilda made the whole ordeal worth it, I swear,” Scorpius said. They were lounging at a quiet and secluded spot by the lake. Rose was sitting with her legs lying straight out in front of her, tilting her head back to soak up the sun. Scorpius sat with his legs crossed, babbling away to her as she listened, nodded, and smiled at his words.

“Really?” Rose said, moving her face forward to look at him. She laughed, shaking her head. “Your dedication is truly admirable, Scorpius.”

Scorpius grinned at her as he fidgeted with the sleeves of his shirt. Rose noticed that he had a habit of doing this a lot, as well as untying and retying his shoe laces.

“Things with Albus and my uncle are a lot better now, aren’t they?” Rose asked.

“Oh yeah, they are,” Scorpius replied. “I’m glad. He needed Harry.”

Rose nodded. “As am I,” she said. Rose paused and bit her lip as she had done earlier. She shifted her position slightly and awkwardly, her body tensing up. “I don’t know if he told you… but we spoke during Christmas a lot. I apologised to him for maybe not being the best cousin that I could have been.”

Scorpius nodded and smiled sympathetically at her. “He did,” He replied. “And he forgives you, I promise. I think all he wants to do now — after Delphi, after all of the trouble with his dad — is to move on. Be happier. More relaxed. We’re Malfoy the Unanxious and Potter the Chilled now.”

Rose burst out laughing; Scorpius’s face responded as if it were the most beautiful sound in the world to him.

“Malfoy the Unanxious and Potter the Chilled,” She repeated. “I like it. The time-travelling duo.”

Scorpius grinned goofily at her, lapping up being able to be this close to her face. She could feel him looking at it, admiring it. It didn’t make her feel uncomfortable. She felt a slight sadness when she looked at his dreaming face and the way he gazed at her. A selfless part of her wanted him to move on; to like someone else and be happier. The selfish part of her wanted the opposite.

“Listen, Scorpius,” Rose finally said. “I’ve been thinking — since Christmas… well, no, actually. Before that. Since you came back from time the first time. When you gave up being The Scorpion King to be…” Rose paused, unsure of how to word it.

“The rumoured son of Voldemort,” Scorpius interrupted, his face darkening. He tried to smile at her, as if it did not bother him. “The very unpopular rumoured son of Voldemort. But I don’t regret my decision. That other world… it was awful. My dad — he wasn’t my dad. My best friend didn’t exist. Your mum, the Minister for Magic, was in hiding — I had to watch her die. You and Hugo… Albus… and countless others… none of you existed.”

Rose’s watched him anxiously ramble and furiously fidget with his sleeves. She leaned over and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“But you’re back here now. Everything is fine,” she said reassuringly before taking a deep breath. “What you did…Scorpius, I’ve been meaning to tell you this for months. I know I’m a Gryffindor but I’m not… I’m not as brave as you, I don’t think. I haven’t had the courage to say this to you when I really should have.”

Scorpius inhaled, something changing in his face. Rose realised what he mistakenly thought was coming and her heart sunk a little.

“I’m sorry, Scorpius,” she said quickly. “I’m sorry for having an image in my head that you were like your father when he was our age. What happened to my mother — people like my mother… I’ve always struggled with it. It makes me angry. And I took out that anger on you. And I’m sorry. It was prejudiced and stupid. What you did — giving up everything for people like my mother… it was brave. Tremendously brave. And my mother thinks so too, by the way.”

Scorpius began to blush furiously, the redness screaming out on his pale cheeks. He looked down at the ground, a small smile now on his face.

“I was jealous of you too, by the way,” she said. “Of you and Albus. I felt… Merlin, this is ridiculous but.. I felt like you stole him from me. And it was stupid. I was stupid and immature and I’m sorry.”

Rose suddenly felt herself being awkwardly wrapped up in Scorpius’s arms; he sprung up and pranced on top of her, throwing his arms around her.

“Of course I forgive you, Rose!” He said, squeezing her tighter. He pulled back and grinned at her, his face melting slightly when he realised how close they were. “I guess — I guess this is a good time to ask you again —”

There was a moment — as quick as lightening — where Rose wanted to let him continue. It was short but she was still able to feel it; it was impossible not to. She pushed it away, slamming it from the front of her mind.

“Scorpius…” Rose began cautiously, composing herself and her voice. “I want to get to know you better… as friends, alright? Don’t take it personally. I’m going into fifth year and I don’t have time for any of those kinds of distractions. I need to focus on my OWLs.”

Scorpius’s optimism remained lit. His face did not fall, he only continued to grin at her and nod enthusiastically.

“Completely understood,” he said before taking a long pause. He looked at her, uncertain, for a few seconds before batting his eyelids. “How would you like to get to know me better this Saturday at Hogsmeade? Over butterbeer?”

Rose felt a twisting sensation in her stomach; it was both pleasant and terrifying. She ignored it, forcing herself to swallow. “As friends?” she said, her voice loud and clear.

“As friends,” Scorpius confirmed.

“Alright,” Rose said. “I’ll get to know you better this Saturday then. As friends.”


	5. Rita Skeeter

Their visit to Hogsmeade went surprisingly well. So well, in-fact, that it was now August and Rose had met with Scorpius nearly every Saturday of the Summer holidays, on top of the occasions where she had seen him at the Burrow with Albus or at the Potter’s.

As their meetings progressed, Scorpius became more and more relaxed around her. His anxiety and the inclination to say horrifically wrong and awkward things faded; they were replaced by his shining kindness and humour. Rose found herself actively enjoying his company — Scorpius was funny, compassionate, and more complex than she had realised.

“I used to go here a lot with my mum when I was younger,” Scorpius said, playing around with the melted ice-cream at the bottom of his glass. “When she was well enough, I mean.”

Rose nodded, folding her arms over her chest nervously. It was a clammy summer’s day (for a British August, at least) and they had decided to go to Florean Fortescue’s. She normally insisted that they should meet in more private places, in the Muggle world. She vaguely knew her way about Muggle London from going there with her mother and her Muggle grandparents; it had been an adventure, trying to work the tube with Scorpius — who had been absolutely fascinated and awe-struck during every trip.

She’d insisted on Muggle London for a lone, selfish reason: she didn’t want people seeing her with Scorpius. It wasn’t because wizarding society still believed he was the son of Voldemort — after defeating Delphi, Scorpius and Draco’s reputation had shifted tremendously.

But she knew that she was a Weasley-Granger. He was a Malfoy.

And Rita Skeeter was a rat. Who would probably write some ridiculous, idiotic, over the top column if it was reported that they had been seen together.

Today, however, Rose woke up with a fierce sense of bravery within her. It was too hot outside and she wasn’t particularly in the mood to walk around a busy London for hours and get lost every half hour. She owled Scorpius and asked if they could meet at Florean Fortescue’s (he enthusiastically agreed), before dressing herself in a sleeveless lilac blouse.

Rita Skeeter be damned.

“When did your mum start getting bad?” Rose asked carefully. They’d spoken about his mum a few times before; she could tell that he still found it difficult to talk about her. It had only been two years, after all.

“It got bad around the time I turned nine,” Scorpius replied, his eyes unable to meet hers. “It got worse when I started Hogwarts.”

Rose nodded, a painful silence coming between them.

“I’m sorry, Scorpius,” she said softly. “No one deserves to have to go through that.”

Scorpius’s eyes finally met hers and he smiled weakly. “Thanks, Rose,” he said, his voice beginning to break.

Rose reached across the table and put her hand on his. She felt sparks jolt through her when his skin touched hers and she felt the sudden urge to pull it away. The feeling terrified her.

“Do you want to leave, Scorpius? We could go elsewhere?”

Scorpius shook his head, dabbing his eyes with his palms.

“I’m just thinking about Delphi and what happened this year,” he said weakly. “My mother… she let herself get weaker so that she could have me. And I was so stupid. So dangerous. Doing what I did. And my dad… my dad… he could have been left with no one.”

Rose nodded sympathetically, tightening her grip on his hand. Scorpius was always so optimistic; never the one to feel sorry for himself. It all must have been, Rose thought, an entirely different and unique situation for him. She continued to stare, debating the best way to comfort him.

“But it’s done now,” She finally said. “Delphi is in Azkaban. You’re safe, you’re here. Your father still has you. No point mulling over it, right?”

Scorpius nodded half-heartedly and used his free hand to quickly dab his eyes again.

“So,” Rose said with a forced cheerful tone. “Tell me about those six books that you bought in the Muggle bookstore. You said in your owl that the last one you were reading was _A Tale of Two Cities_. Did you like it?”

Scorpius’s face lit up, a grin spreading across his face. The sight made Rose smile and retract her hand.

“Yes! I did, I loved it,” Scorpius began.

He babbled on about the book, going into an intense amount of detail. Rose listened attentively as he easily quoted from it and gushed. She watched, smiling, at the way his hands moved when he got excited about a point. He was wearing a short sleeved top, showing off his long and lanky arms. Rose felt flustered whenever she let her eyes linger on them for too long. She told herself that it was the heat.

“We need to go back there,” Scorpius said. “To that book store. We should go this Christmas.”

Rose responded with an enthusiastic smile and nod. “Of course!” She said. “I could also get books delivered to my house and my mum could owl them to me at Hogwarts. I could pass them on to you that way.”

Scorpius looked at her blankly.

“Muggle stores use owls?” He said. “I don’t think that’s right, with all the respect in the world, Rose. I’ve never read about it in any of my Muggle Studies books and it’s never came up in class.”

Rose burst into laughter. “No, no. Not by owl. I’ll order them through Amazon.”

“Ah! Amazon. We covered that. It was founded in 1994 and some Muggles criticise it for their working conditions. Your mum should create a SPEW for them,” Scorpius said, grinning.

“Ha!” Rose said. “I don’t know how you manage to contain all of that knowledge, Scorpius.”

“Coming from the daughter of Hermione Granger,” Scorpius replied, blushing.

Rose’s face darkened at his comment. Scorpius noticed it and his face began to panic.

“Oh no! I didn’t mean, Rose… that you… that you need to be or should…”

Rose shook her head and raised her hand to stop him. “It’s alright,” She replied, her voice shaky. “It’s a lot of pressure but it’s not — it’s not the worst. I know my marks will never be as good as hers but — but —”

Scorpius raised his hand from underneath the table before stopping it in mid-air. His meetings with Rose had been going so well. He felt like they were friends. He’d taken Albus’s advice about relaxing around her and it seemed to have worked. He didn’t want to waste it by implying that he couldn’t control his feelings around her.

“You, me and Albus should start up a club,” He finally said, cheerfully. “Scorpius They-Thought-My-Dad-Was-Voldemort Malfoy. Albus Don’t-Call-Me-Al-Because-My-Dad-Does Potter. Rose Literal-Daughter-Of-The-Brightest-Witch-Of-Her-Age Granger-Weasley.”

“I would like to experience that,” Rose said, laughing and no longer glum. “Thanks, Scorpius. I enjoy your company a lot, you know.”

Suddenly, as if he had lost all control of his tongue, Scorpius began to nervously ramble. “She may be the Brightest Witch of Her Age. But you are the most wonderful witch of your age. And the most beautiful. And, actually, the brightest of _your_ age. Because _your_ mum’s age and _your_ age are different. Did I mention you are the most _wonderful_ witch of your age?”

When Scorpius finished, he looked at her with bright eyes for a few seconds. Then, he realised what he had just said.

“Scorpius,” Rose began cautiously. “My OWLs…”

“No!” Scorpius squeaked, his voice hoarse. “I mean no - not no, I mean yes! I understand. Your OWLs. My OWLs. Owl me those books?”

He jolted up. Rose looked up at him, confused.

“This has been great — m - more than great, Rose, but I better get back. Need to see my dad.”

Rose stood up and put a hand on his shoulder. “Scorpius. It’s alright, I’m not bothered.”

“Neither! I’m alright. I’m not bothered. I’ll see you back at Hogwarts, alright? I’m alright.”

Rose made the quick decision to let him leave, knowing that she would be unable to calm him. She would get Albus to owl him tonight and casually tell him that she was fine with him.

“Alright,” Rose said, smiling softly at him. “I’ll see you at Hogwarts.” She stepped to the side of the table as he did. The two faced each other in silence.

Rose felt a strong and undeniable pull towards him as they stood like that. He was taller by a few inches and she suspected that he would only continue to grow. She let her eyes glaze over his lanky figure: the way his well-tailored brown trousers sat on him, making his legs seem taller and more gangly; the way his navy top clung to his chest…

The way he felt against her as he flung his arms around her, pulling her into a hug. The heat of his skin against hers. She expected him to be cold. Maybe it was because he was so pale, she thought. It doesn’t matter.. he’s warm, so warm.

And suddenly, as quickly as it had came, the warmness was gone.

Scorpius pulled back and looked at her with bulging eyes.

“Bye Rose,” he said with rapid speed and, before she could reply, he was off — stumbling away from her, tilting over as he walked.

* * *

 

  
**THE SCORPION AND THE ROSE: HEAVENLY MATCH OR A SALIVATING-LY DISGUSTING LOVE AFFAIR?**  
_By Rita Skeeter_

_Scorpius Malfoy, aged 15, from Slytherin house, was seen with the darling daughter of Minister for Magic, Hermione Granger, and her shop-keeper husband, Ron Weasley. Rose, aged 15 and in Gryffindor, was spotted enjoying an ice-cream with the young Slytherin in Diagon Alley yesterday afternoon. Reports say that the two couldn’t keep their hands off of each other, salivating on each other’s faces and being forced to use their ice-cream to calm their flustered selves down. Such inappropriate behaviour must make one question the parenting skills of Ron and Hermione. Has Hermione been spending too much time in the Ministry, rather than raising her daughter properly? Has Ron been transferring his career in making jokes to his domestic life?_

_One can only imagine what dear Draco Malfoy will make of this. While his son may not be the spawn of you-know-who (although, Scorpius does have much preferable hair to Delphini), is he only using Rose to bring their family back into the best graces within society? One can only speculate._

Rose had tried to think of Scorpius that morning. Of his limitless optimism. She tried to focus on the positivity of her mum obviously calming her dad down and the article not being mentioned by either of them at breakfast or lunch. Hermione only took her daughter aside privately and quietly afterwards.

“It’s all a lie, Mum,” Rose said fiercely. “She’s a dirty, disgusting, rotten, nasty, awful liar! I didn’t kiss him! We’re just friends!”

“I know, Rose. I know,” Hermione said, cupping Rose’s face. “I believe you. Don’t let it bother you, what she says. I’ll speak to her, alright?” Hermione pulled her into a tight hug, stroking the back of her bushy coils. Rose nodded into her mother’s chest, furiously biting her lip to prevent herself from crying.

The moment that Rose reached her room, she burst into tears and began to slam her fists against her pillow.

She yanked open her drawer and reached in to grab a quill and parchment. She furiously scribbled before giving it to her owl, Daisy, to send:

_Scorpius,_

_Please ignore what Rita Skeeter said this morning in her article. She’s disgusting. My parents don’t believe any of it. I hope your dad feels the same._

_I don’t think we should see each other outside of Hogwarts any more if it’s not in the Muggle world — at least until this all blows over. I’ll still send you books, though. I’ll see you soon. Get Albus to come sit with James and the rest of us on the train, ok?_

_Rose x_


	6. Poor Advice

It took Rose months to start to get over her seething rage at Rita Skeeter’s article.

Being a Granger-Weasley, being _Rose Granger-Weasley_ , had always been a positive experience for Rose (in _this_ time-line, at least). But now, Rose felt painfully aware of the weight that her name carried. She could no longer talk to Scorpius freely without her eyes anxiously darting about around her, searching for any suspicious or analysing looks. She began to worry about her OWLs and going into fifth year. Her mother was Minister for Magic — she became paranoid that, if she didn’t excel in them, it would be leaked to the papers and she would be mocked. She felt her childhood confidence begin to drain.

She entered her fifth year of school with the hungry and vicious ambition to do well, spending the majority of her free time religiously studying in the library.

“Rose, do you really need to go to the library today? Again? On another Saturday? It’s only October. You don’t need to start revising _this_ much, _this_ early,” Dominique said to her one morning at breakfast.

Rose shook her head, a hard and determined look on her face.

“I want straight Os,” Rose said firmly, folding her arms. “I’m not sure what I want to do yet after I leave Hogwarts, so I need to keep my options opened.”

Dominique rolled her eyes. “You’re worse than Becca was,” she said, pausing to take a fork-full of scrambled eggs. “I got eight Os, one E and an A and the _International Magical Trading Standards Body_ at the Ministry still gave me a conditional job offer. So relax, alright?”

Rose took a large gulp of orange juice to stop herself from responding. She was dangerously close to snapping at Dominique and explaining how it was different for her, the Minister for Magic’s daughter.

Luckily for Rose, Thaminah interrupted their conversation from across the table.

“You’ll never believe what I just found out,” she said. “Scorpius Malfoy went on a date with Hannah Goldstein. Hannah Goldstein! She’s practically guaranteed to be Hufflepuff Quidditch captain next year!”

Rose’s fork landed on her plate with a loud clatter.

“Are you alright, Rose?” Dominique said, raising her eyebrows.

Rose ignored her and turned to Thaminah. “How do you know?”

“Eyewitnesses, of course,” Thaminah replied. “I think they make a cute couple. You’re not bothered though, right? After all, you did always used to stress that your little meet-ups with Scorpius were purely platonic.”

Dominique snorted.

“They were!” Rose said, dramatically pushing her chair back and rising from it. “You are both fools if you believe Rita Skeeter. And bad friends too!”

“I don’t believe Rita Skeeter, Rose. It’s just that, well…” Dominique was interrupted by the appearance of her girlfriend, Rebecca, wrapping her arms around Dominique’s shoulders from behind her. She looked up and smiled; Rebecca leaned down and placed a light peck on her lips. Once they were finished, she looked around, ready to continue her speech. “Where did she go?”

Thaminah flashed a grin. “Where else? To the library, of course. To study until she has a headache and can’t keep her eyes open any longer.”

* * *

Scorpius and Hannah went on only three dates before they, according to Thaminah, decided that their interest in each other was purely platonic.

“It was mutual,” she explained to Rose at dinner in November. “Hannah told Maria that they didn’t even kiss.”

Rose continued to eat, pretending that she had no interest.

“So are you going to ask him out then, Rose?”

“Dominique!” Rose snapped, feeling flushed. “A: I have OWLs to revise for. B: I don’t like Scorpius Malfoy.”

“Rose…” Dominique sighed, her face serious. “You just need to let yourself —”

Rose suddenly rose from her chair, smoothing out her skirt with her sweaty palms once she towered over them.

“I have OWLs to study for. I’ll see you later, Dom and Thaminah,” she said curtly. She turned around quickly, but elegantly, and began to storm down the Great Hall.

Dominique shook her head, leaning back against her seat. She felt a twang of despair, desperately wanting to find a way to help her cousin.

It was only when she noticed Scorpius Malfoy, at the Slytherin table, watching Rose with a dazed and hopeful expression on his face that she could allow herself to relax.

* * *

Christmas came and went. For Rose, it barely resembled a holiday; she spent every day of it (including the train there and back) devotedly studying and distracting herself from the news that Scorpius was in another relationship.

She comforted herself with the possibility that they too would only last three dates.

A fourth, however, occurred. Then a fifth. Then a sixth. A seventh.

Then she saw him kiss Jamie, a handsome brown-haired and geeky Ravenclaw, as they said goodbye before a class.

Rose did not cry. She felt a scorching sensation on her skin; she felt the tears prickle painfully in her eyes. But she did not cry. She went to the library and revised for nine hours straight instead.

Rose made a determined effort to avoid the two boys whenever she wasn’t in the library. She would keep her head down during meal times, her eyes firmly fixed on her meals. She tried to avoid Scorpius’s friendly chatter too, cutting short any times whenever he would approach her. He seemed hurt and she swore that she once saw him frown as she spun around and quickly left him. It didn’t matter if he frowned or not, Rose told herself. He’s got someone else now. You were just a young crush.

It was now February. The library was getting crowded and Rose was struggling to make it her sanctuary anymore. She continued to work hard — spending twelve hours, daily, at the weekends revising.

One Sunday morning at breakfast, Rose could hardly keep her eyes open. Her face was worn and puffy; black, bruised bags hung underneath her eyes. Her face was the final straw for Dominique.

“You can look up, Rose,” Dominique said flatly. “They broke up.”

Rose’s head snapped up. 

“Jamie and Scorpius?”

Dominique nodded. “He told me that they agreed that just because they both enjoy reading and find each other attractive, doesn’t necessarily mean that they enjoy each other romantically. I don’t think either of them were really fully into it, to be honest.”

“That’s mature of them,” Rose said carefully. She looked down at her watch and gaped at the time. She was ten minutes behind her revision schedule. “I need to go,” she said quickly. “I’m late.”

She bolted up and started to dart off through the Great Hall. Dominique shot up seconds behind her and began to follow, her long legs an equal match for Rose’s.

“Rose!”

Rose ignored her, continuing to push ahead.

“Rose!” Dominique repeated, shouting now. A few straggling students began to look at them as they rushed, trying to outrun each other. “Rose!!”

Rose halted and spun around, facing Dominique with a stony expression on her face.

“Dom, leave me alone,” Rose said. “I need to revise. I need to get all Os.”

All patience lost at this point, Dominique forcefully grabbed Rose’s arm and dragged her off into a nearby, empty corridor. Rose objected, shifting and viciously trying to free herself.

“Let me go, Dom! I need to revise!”

“No, you do fucking not,” Dominique snapped. Rose was taken aback by her tone, her head moving backwards slightly in shock. They were inches away from each other, panting furiously after having to outrun each other for so long. “You’ve been revising way too much Rose and I can’t sit back and watch any longer. You’re making yourself ill, alright? Look at yourself. You’ve been loosing weight ever since last summer with these revision habits. You need to take care of yourself. You need to talk to someone about the pressure you feel, being Aunt Hermione’s daughter.”

“I don’t feel any pressure!”

“Yes — yes you do, Rose,” Dominique said. She stopped, composing herself and allowing for her breathing to even. Her face began to soften and she put her hands delicately on either side of Rose. The thinness of her arms shocked her; her cousin did not feel the way she had a year ago. “And it’s ok, to feel pressured. Your mum is the fucking Minister for Magic. You’re allowed to feel this way. But not like this. You can’t let yourself get ill. You need to stop; you need to take a break and be healthy.”

“There’s nothing wrong with hard work!”

“Rose!”

“I’m leaving, Dominique. I’ll see you tonight.”

“No!” Dominique said, grabbing Rose to prevent her from walking away. “Listen to me: you’re allowed to not spend a day studying. You ignore things, Rose. You’re an ignorer. You’re ignoring how ill this is making you. You’re ignoring how much pressure you feel being her daughter. But it’s ok — we can get someone to help you — help you work on facing things and dealing with them. We can talk to Professor McGonagall, ok? I’ll be there for you, I promise.”

“I am not - I am not — I do not ignore things!”

“Yes you do!” Dominique exclaimed. She tried to force herself to calm down and to look at her cousin more softly. “You do, Rose. You’ve been doing it with your feelings for Scorpius all year. I see how you look at him — and how he still looks at you. You don’t need to ignore them. You two could be happy together. Have fun together..”

“I do not like Scorpius Malfoy! And he does not like me! He dated Hannah and Jamie. He’s over me. It was a young crush!”

Dominique rolled her eyes. “Yes, he was interested in them and he enjoyed their company. But he hasn’t liked them for almost five years now - like he has with you! And the only reason that he asked them…”

“What? What only reason?”

Dominique stayed silent, analysing the situation. Finally, she threw her arms up in the air and sighed.

“I wasn’t supposed to tell you but I don’t see the point now.”

“Tell me what?”

“Albus told Scorpius about how his mum and dad got together,” Dominique said. “He thought your mum’s advice to Auntie Ginny would be good for Scorpius — be more relaxed around you and try to see other people.”

The expression on Rose’s face dropped; there was no longer any anger there. It was replaced by a horrified expression.

“What?” Dominique demanded. “Rose, what?”

“I need to go and speak to Albus,” Rose choked and, before Dominique was able to grab her, she sprinted off to find her cousin.

* * *

“How dare you!” Rose yelled at Albus. They were on the grounds of Hogwarts; she had found him on his way to Hagrid’s, buttoned up in the cold. She was lucky that it was February and the other students had chosen to stay inside, warm. She was able to yell louder at him this way.

“I just gave him some advice!” Albus said, shocked by her outburst. “And it did him good! He’s been more relaxed around you, that’s a good thing! At least he’s not telling you that you smell of bread anymore! Merlin, Rose! I thought that you would be thanking me! At least he has!”

“Not just any advice, Albus!” Rose yelled. “Our parents! You’re trying to get our parents involved! And what they did — following in their footsteps… you - you - you can’t just — we — it’s enough pressure as it is!” Her voice began to break as she spoke, her throat felt like it was closing up.

“Rose, that was the last thing I wanted to do. You know… after everything with my dad… that I would never. You’re overreacting here.”

“I’m not overreacting!”

“Rose! Albus!”

Rose and Albus turned around to see Scorpius grinning at them. His face quickly fell, concern rushing over it, as he looked at them.

“Is everything ok? You look… tired Rose. You've been looking tired a lot, recently. You're always in the library. Are you trying to outdo me?" He grinned at her comically, desperately wanting to cheer her up. He stopped when her face - agitated, tired and sad - remained unchanged. "Do you want me to take you to Madam Pomfrey?” He moved his hand out, wanting to put it around her shoulder.

Rose jumped back and shook her head quickly. “No, I’m fine. I was just saying goodbye to Albus. I need to go and study. I’ll see you later,” she choked.

Rose stumbled off, feeling faint, as Scorpius’s arm remained out, reaching for her.


	7. Support

The start of summer came with the start of exams. The library began to crowd as the older students desperately crammed in final revision, bitterly watching the younger years enjoy any days of sunshine.

The first O.W.L exam was in a week — _History of Magic_. Rose had been sitting with Thaminah and Milly in the Gryffindor common room, quizzing each other, until the appearance of a hot, agitated and bored James forced them to leave.

“I wasn’t even going to waste my time telling him off,” Rose said to her friends as they made their way to the library, books in hand. “We only have a week. Time is too precious for a hot and bothered James Potter.”

Milly laughed, adjusting her books awkwardly. “It is really hot,” she said, wiping sweat from her forehead. “I wish Hogwarts could do something about the heat. What’s the thing that Muggles use again?”

“Air-conditioning,” Rose replied. “They don’t use it much over here, though. My grandparents don’t have it. But you’re right. It is scorching.”

“Yeah, and you skipped breakfast and lunch today in favour of revising,” Thaminah said, glaring at her. “You should eat something, Rose. This is becoming ridiculous.”

“I wasn’t hungry,” Rose snapped back. “I can’t eat in this heat.”

Thaminah and Milly looked at each other and rolled their eyes.

“I’m not even going to bother anymore,” Thaminah said. “I’m leaving it to Dominique.”

* * *

 

When the girls arrived, they realised that the library was the poorest place to revise on a hot day. It was too crowded, the heat was making the students more delirious and stressed, and it was devoid of all personal space.

“Nope,” Thaminah said. “Lets go outside. I’m not doing this.”

Milly nodded. “Definitely. I think I’d melt up here.”

“But the first-years are all outside!” Rose objected, desperately looking around the library for any spare tables. “I can’t revise out there! I just can’t!”

“Rose!” Milly snapped. “Don’t be silly, you won’t get any work done here!”

“Look, there’s a free table over there!” Rose said, motioning over to one at the back. “C’mon, we can quiz each other over there.”

“Rose, it only has one seat,” Thaminah said, grabbing her shoulder. “Let's go. Milly’s right — you’re being silly. Again.”

“You two can go,” Rose said firmly. “I'm staying. Go outside and enjoy the sunshine. I’ll be fine here, I just need to work.”

“I’m not even going to argue with you,” Milly said. “I’ll leave that to Dominique, like Thaminah said.”

Rose rolled her eyes. “And I’ll just continue to avoid her, as I’ve been doing.”

“We’re here, you know. If you want to talk or relax, Rose,” Thaminah said, her voice softer. “I know that we’ll never…. understand… but we can try.”

Rose smiled at them, her body relaxing as she felt comforted by their support. “Thanks, Thaminah. I appreciate it. But I’m fine, ok? Don’t worry about me. Go out and enjoy the sun.”

Milly and Thaminah nodded before leaving, a hint of hesitation running through them as they did so. They both made a mental note to update Dominique on Rose’s behaviour — they glumly knew that, as the official exam period approached, it would only get worse.

Once they had left, Rose rushed over to the free table and forcefully threw her books down. She began to read over her enchanted flashcards hungrily, testing herself over and over. She would normally get everything correct - but in the rare occasions when she didn’t, she would start to tear up and be forced to bite her lip to prevent herself from crying.

An hour into her revision, Rose felt herself getting increasingly hot and flustered. Sweat was dripping down her face, her armpits were drenched and she was starting to feel extremely light-headed.

“Right, I need to eat,” she mumbled under her breath, feeling concerned as the words in-front of her began to blur. She stumbled up, swaying as she did so. Students around her noticed, looking at her with concern. “I’m alright,” She said to them, flicking her hand. “Just warm, that’s all.” She sounded like she was slurring. At least, she _thought_ she sounded like she was slurring. Everything seemed to be morphing and bluring around her, even her own voice.

Rose began to make her way to the bathroom, keeping her eyes focused on the door. Only fifteen more steps… fourteen… Oh, I’ve lost count!

“Well, at least some of us can rely on their parents for a job if they do badly.”

Rose stopped as an angry heat rushed through her body. She knew that voice. Clarence Anderson. Ravenclaw. Clarence had taken a dislike to her ever since she used to beat him in Potions. Rose had always put it down to insecurity and ignored it. She let the silent revenge be her higher marks.

Rose turned around to face him, regretting it once the room began to spin around her as she did so. She silently told herself to ignore the spinning and just focus on him.

“Excuse me, Clarence?” She said, raising her eyebrows and folding her arms.

The boys around Clarence sniggered, leaning back on their chairs. They were enjoying this.

“Oh nothing,” Clarence said, mirroring her in folding his arms. “Just pondering.”

“For your information —”

“Rose!”

Rose spun around, her eyes widening as she saw Scorpius Malfoy in front of her. 

“Why are you swaying from side to side, Scorpius?” Rose asked.

“Swaying? I’m not swaying.”

“Yes — yes you are… Oh Albus, hello. When did you arrive?”

“Just there. With Scorpius.”

“Oh, didn’t see you then,” Rose said, shaking her head. “I was just about to tell Clarence about how…” Rose stopped, black dots beginning to cloud her vision. She shook her head and tightly shut her eyes as her breathing began to feel heavy.

“Tell me what?”

“Shut up, Anderson,” Albus snapped. “It’s probably the same rubbish about us getting jobs off of our parents. Don’t worry Rose, he’s said the same to me.”

“It’s true though,” Clarence said.

“Albus, don’t!” Scorpius exclaimed.

Rose opened her eyes when she heard the cluttering and noise; the black dots were filling up her vision quickly now, enclosing her in darkness.

“Rose? Are you alright Rose?” She heard Scorpius say. She could feel someone’s hand on her.

Rose opened her mouth to reply but the words had little time to come out. She fell onto her knees, her eyes falling forward, and collapsed into Scorpius's arms as he dived forward to catch her.

“Oh for fucks sake!” Dominique said, as she rushed towards Rose. She was limp and lifeless, held up by a frantic Scorpius.

“Nurse!” Scorpius yelped. “Someone get a nurse! Albus — quick, help me! Someone check her pulse!”

“Scorpius, calm down,” Dominique snapped, assisting him in gently moving Rose onto the ground. “I swear to Dumbledore, if she’s been skipping meals again…”

* * *

 

When Rose opened her eyes, the first thing that she noticed was how cool it was. Then, how dark it was.

Her eyes fluttered open slowly and warily, as if her subconscious was hesitant about doing so. It took her a few minutes to settle and reintegrate herself back into the world; she would close and reopen her eyes, moving them around when they were open.

Rose realised that she was in the infirmary. She noticed that, attached to her, was a drip. She frowned and started to poke at her mind for how she got here.

“Ah,” she said softly when she finally remembered being at the library. “That makes sense.”

“Rose?”

“Scorpius?” Rose said, looking over to where the voice came from. He was sitting beside her bed, a book on his lap. He looked exhausted — his shirt buttoned down and untucked, his hair ruffled.

“Are you alright?” He asked. “Just try and sit back and take it easy, ok? Madam Pomfrey said earlier that she’s going to come in at midnight with more fluids.”

“Midnight?”

“You’ve been out all day,” Scorpius said. “But you’re alright now, aren’t you?”

“I’ve missed so much revision!”

Scorpius grinned at her. “Dominique told me that you would say that.”

“Did she now?”

Scorpius nodded. “Rose, I know that it isn’t my place…”

“It isn’t,” Rose snapped, folding her arms. “So don’t.”

“Well, you did faint in my arms,” Scorpius said. “So I do feel just slightly obliged here, you know.”

Rose let out a loud groan. “Did I really? That’s mortifying.”

Scorpius quietly chuckled.“Yes, you did. But it’s fine. I'm used to drama at Hogwarts by now. That was only mild, for me. But really — Rose, I understand your passion for History of Magic. I do. I could sit and read about the subject for _days_. And about Dumbledore’s Army? For _weeks_. Bathilda? _Years_. But I’ve never, in all my years of geekery, fainted over History of Magic. Not even when I saw the Goddess herself. Ask Albus.”

“I appreciate the anecdote, Scorpius. But this is different. You - you don’t understand.”

“But I do,” Scorpius replied. “And so does Albus. Remember what I said to you that day when we were having ice-cream? Scorpius They-Thought-My-Dad-Was-Voldemort Malfoy. Albus Don’t-Call-Me-Al-Because-My-Dad-Does Potter. Rose…”

“Literal-Daughter-Of-The-Brightest-Witch-Of-Her-Age Granger-Weasley,” Rose interrupted, her voice solemn.

Scorpius nodded. “We get it, Albus and I. He’s worried about you too. We can all — I don’t know, talk about it. We’ve both gotten over it for the most part. We can help you.”

“Yeah, you got over it through stealing a time-turner,” Rose snorted. “That solved all of your parental issues.”

“We still struggle with it,” Scorpius said softly. “But you’re right. Time-turning… good for solving Father-Son issues. But not so good, overall. You should talk to someone. One of those healers that specialise in these sort of things.”

“I am not pouring my heart out to a healer."

“Albus did,” Scorpius said. “After he came back.”

Rose frowned and looked back at Scorpius. “Did he really?” She asked. “No one told me this.”

“He didn’t tell anyone,” Scorpius explained. “Just me, his mum, and his dad. He said… he said after we took you here today that I could tell you, though. He thinks it might help. You can speak to Madam Pomfrey about getting one.”

Rose didn’t reply. She mulled the thought over in her head. A healer. Someone professional to talk to. _Support._

She flinched as she felt Scorpius place his hand on hers. He quickly pulled away when he saw her reaction, his face reddening.

“I’m sorry…” He choked out. “That was stupid. Really stupid. Back to Bathilda — sorry, not Bathilda. Back to your revision. History of Magic revision. Sorry, I’m rambling. I’m sorry for putting my hand —”

He was silenced by Rose placing her hand on his.

“No, no, it’s fine,” she said quickly. “I’m just on edge. Sorry.”

“It’s ok,” Scorpius replied, relaxing. “I don’t like being weird around you. Like I was, when I was younger. Well, okay, a year ago.”

“You aren’t weird around me.”

“I once said that you smelt of bread.”

“Correction — nice bread.”

They both burst out into laughter; for the first time in months, Rose began to feel relaxed. Truly relaxed. She felt light — and not in the way she did earlier, moments away from fainting. This was a good kind of lightness.

Finally, once they had both stopped, Rose stared at him thoughtfully for a few moments.

“What is it?” Scorpius asked.

“You’re right. I’m going to go and see a healer,” she said. “I think it’ll be good for me.”

“I think so too. And Albus and I are always here, if you ever need someone to talk too. Dominique too, I think. She was worried about you earlier. Well… angry. But worried. A worried-kind-of-angry. Like my dad when I had my little time-travelling escapes.”

Rose laughed again and smiled over at him. “Thanks, Scorpius,” she said. “And for catching me earlier. Very much appreciated.”

They were interrupted by the appearance of Madam Pomfrey coming into the room. Scorpius rose from the chair and held both his hands up cautiously.

“I was going to leave…” He began. “But Rose started, uhm, she started sweating again.”

“ _Sweating_ again?” Madam Pomfrey said, shaking her head. “Mr Malfoy, I told you that you can’t stay in here any longer. You need to leave. Miss Granger-Weasley will be fine here.”

Deciding that arguing would be in vain, Scorpius nodded and turned to Rose. “I’ll see you tomorrow, ok?”

“See you tomorrow,” Rose said, smiling. “I’ll be fine. I just want to sleep.”

“Good,” Scorpius said. He glanced over at Madam Pomfrey and then back to Rose. “Remember to ask about… you know…”

“Don’t worry, I will.”

When Scorpius left, Rose asked Madam Pomfrey about going to see a healer. She began to cry as she told her about the past year — Rita Skeeter’s article, the pressure that she felt. She sobbed and sobbed, going through a box of tissues as Madam Pomfrey sat and listened sympathetically. Once her tears had dried, she began to feel _fresh_. The knowledge that soon — maybe not today, or next week, or next month but _soon_ — she would begin to feel happier and healthier seemed, at that moment, like the most important thing in the whole world.


	8. Progression

Rose fiddled nervously with her fingers as she sat, staring at the pale pink wall in front of her. Bits of the wallpaper had started peeling at the sides, revealing old, brown brickwork underneath. The small room was drenched in an uncomfortable silence; the only sounds came from the ticking of the clock on the wall and the echoes of sound from the receptionists in the other room.

Rose huffed impatiently, bouncing her left leg up and down. _I just want to get this over with for another week_ , she thought.

It wasn’t that Rose was finding her weekly appointments with a healer unhelpful — two weeks in and they had been insightful. The tips that her healer gave her to cope with stress and dealing with being Rose Granger Weasley were beginning to work. It was more the paranoia of sneaking behind her parents’s backs to get there and behind the public's backs.  
  
Because she was Rose Granger-Weasley, daughter of Hermione and Ron. Daughter of the Minister for Magic. And being Rose Granger-Weasley, she had to request a separate waiting room and private entrance into St Mungo’s.

The thought of any headline, or article, or rumour, made Rose feel nauseous and sweaty. The past year seemed like such a private experience. Rose wasn’t ready to shout to the world about how difficult she found it being _her_.

Only Dominique and Scorpius knew about her appointments. Dominique had come with her to the first one, loyally sitting alone in the waiting room once Rose had been called in. Scorpius was writing to her daily throughout June and would either ask how she was doing or distract her.

He always seemed to know which of the two that she needed.

As she thought of Scorpius, Rose reached into her purple leather bag, a gift from her Granger-Grandparents, and pulled out a neatly folded letter from him:

_Hi Rose,_

_I hope you’ve been doing well. Did you finish reading Vanity Fair? I did! Write back to me if you have and let me know what you thought._

_I’m going to Lucy's engagement party on Friday, at the Burrow. I'll see you there? If so, save me a dance!_

_Again, I hope you’re still doing well. Let me know how appointment three goes. I bet it will be fine! Albus and I are still always here for you and the parental-issue support club offer still stands._

_From your favourite Bathilda Bagshot enthusiast,_  
_Scorpius_

Rose smiled as she reread it, gently smoothing out the paper as her eyes tenderly glazed over his words.

“Miss Granger-Weasley? Rose?”

Rose’s head snapped up; her healer, Sean, was standing at the door in front of her. He was smiling warmly, as he usually did. She neatly folded the letter back up, carefully placing it into her bag, before she stood and walked over to the door.

“How have you been?” Sean asked as they walked to his office.

“Good.”

“On a scale of one to ten?”

Rose waited until they were in his office to reply. A precaution.

“A seven when I’m not thinking about O.W.L results. A five when I am.”

They both sat down.

“And how often do you find yourself thinking about O.W.L results?”

“Often. When my mind wanders.”

“Have you tried challenging those thoughts again?”

Rose nodded. “Yes,” she replied. “I used to be a two whenever I thought about them. But now I’m a five after challenging my thoughts. It’s... a miracle.”

Sean laughed, looking down at the clipboard that sat on his lap. “It says that you’re only in for a half hour appointment today. Why is that?”

“My mum is finishing work early,” Rose said. “I told you that she doesn’t know yet. Neither does my dad.”

Sean sighed and straightened his posture up. “Rose, I know that you’re sixteen and that I’m under no legal obligation to tell your guardians about this. But I do think that it would be a tremendous help if you told them about how you’ve been feeling this past year. You said that they noticed, didn’t you?”

“That’s right.”

“And you tried to hide it and deny it, am I correct?”

“Also right.”

“I can’t make these decisions for you. That isn’t my job. But I do think that, truthfully, you would benefit from speaking to your parents. I think that you’d be surprised to know that maybe they, too, understand some of the pressure that you feel.”

“Well, that’s true,” Rose said, shifting in her seat. “Mum is Minister for Magic. And many children do rely on dad’s joke-shop for a bit of happiness and laughter.”

“Exactly. But as I said, it’s your decision,” Sean said. “I was wondering if it would be ok, for the short time that we have left for today, to chat about your behaviour as the daughter of your parents.”

“My _behaviour_?”

“I was looking over the notes that we made last time. About how displeased you were when your cousin gave your friend… what was his name again? You kept changing it throughout the conversation.”

Rose grinned sheepishly. “Let’s go with… Mike.”

“Alright, Mike. When he gave Mike relationship advice based on the past. What your parents had done. It didn’t make you happy at all, did it?”

“No, I was furious.”

“Why?”

“Because there’s such… there’s such an expectation for us to be like our parents. I don’t want that.”

“But you also want to achieve academically like your mum. Correct?”

Rose shifted uncomfortably in her seat again. “That’s true,” she said, her voice now lower.

“And you spoke about being frustrated that you aren’t as funny as your dad. Correct?”

Rose nodded. “Also correct.”

Sean put his clipboard down and looked at Rose. “It seems to me like most decisions you make, the most important things that you do, are driven by a simultaneous desire to be both _like_ your parents and _unlike_ your parents. The two seem to be battling with each other for dominance.”

Rose could feel herself tearing up as her body went numb. She gave a weak nod, biting her lip. Sean smiled sympathetically and passed her a box of tissues. She’d guessed during their first meeting that he was a Squib: she’d never seen him use his wand or seen it at all in his office.

“It also seems to me that, maybe, it would be good if you tried to ask what you want. I’m not saying that it will be a quick fix to the pressure that you feel. But it won’t hurt to try. Think about why you want all Os. Is it because your mum was academically successful? Or is it because you want to see your hard work pay off and to be able to do the career that you want to?”

“I have no clue,” Rose whispered before continuing to clench her teeth down on her lip.

“You aren’t supposed to know. Not yet, at least,” Sean said. “It’s just start. Think about what _you_ want or would do. Not what your parents would have or wouldn’t have.”

Thoughts began to swirl around in Rose’s head — of her O.W.L results. Why she wanted all Os. She even went as far back as her sorting. Why did she want to be in Gryffindor? But, intermingled with the flurry of thoughts, was the letter sitting in her bag. Signed from Scorpius.

_What do I want?_

_What do I want?_

_What do I want?_  

* * *

 

When Hermione returned from work that afternoon, she found Rose sobbing in the living room. She was lying down on the sofa and making little muffled shrieks against the pillow that her face sat on.

“Rose!” Hermione exclaimed, dropping her bag and rushing forward. “Rose, my love, what's wrong? Talk to me.”

Rose sat up and stared at her mother. Face puffy, eyes red and bloodshot. It was no use, pretending. Pretending and denying. It did no good.

So she told her everything. She collapsed into her arms and told her everything. Crying as her mother listened with a heartbroken expression on her face.

“Oh Rose,” Hermione whispered, her voice now trembling. “Oh Rose, Rose, Rose. I wish you’d told me earlier.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, don’t be sorry,” Hermione said, pulling her closer. “I’m proud of you for going to the healer alone. And for telling me everything today.”

“Thanks, mum,” Rose sniffed.

“I want you to know, that when your O.W.L results arrive…your dad and I…”

Rose shook her head, wiping the snot off of her face with the back of her hand. “I love you, Mum, and this has been so good. So good. To get everything off my chest. But I’m tired and drained today.”

Hermione nodded. “Of course,” she said. “I understand, my love. Don’t worry. We can talk about it tomorrow. Or the day after that. Whenever you’re ready.”

They remained in silence until Rose stopped crying. She was placed firmly against her mother’s warm chest, listening to her heart beating. It felt good. It felt warm. It felt like comfort and home and everything that Rose needed.

“Your dad and I are so, so proud of you, Rosie,” Hermione finally said, her voice soft. “Of the young woman that you’re flourishing into. Never forget that. We’re so, so proud. We… we never want you to feel pressured, ever.”

“I know,” Rose hummed against her chest. “And I’m proud of you both too, you know. Of everything that you both overcame. When… when Albus and Scorpius went back and created that world… I realised… I realised how hard you had to fight, mum. To just exist.”

“And I would do it all over again,” Hermione said, kissing her daughter’s forehead. “I would do it one hundred times over if it meant allowing for you and Hugo to grow up happy and safe. To be the confident and brilliant children that you are.” Hermione looked at the watch on her wrist. “Your dad will be home soon. Do you want to sit down with him tomorrow, with me?”

Rose nodded. “That would be best,” she said, giving her mum one final squeeze before she stood up.

“We love you,” Hermione said, gazing up at her daughter. Rose noticed that she had been crying too.

“And I love you both too,” Rose said. _Love, love, love. Dark Magic never stood a chance_.

* * *

 

Rose went up to her room and showered, carefully massaging the soap all over her skin to relax. She noticed her owl at the window when she came back into her room, wrapped in a fluffy and comforting dressing gown. She went over and took the letter that Daisy was holding.

Rose looked at it and saw Scorpius’s curly handwriting on the envelope.

_What do I want?_

_What do I want?_

_What do I want?_

_Him, him, him._

_I want him._


	9. Stars

“Oh no. No. No. This looks awful!”

Rose had been standing in front of her mirror for ten minutes, carefully examining her reflection. She had tried on three dresses so far and none of them seemed to fit right. None of them were perfect. _None of them were what she wanted._

Letting out a sigh in frustration, she quickly whipped the current dress off and padded over to her wardrobe. She began to bitterly move through the wrack, scanning at outfits and huffing _. I want none of these. I want none of these. This is not want I want._

“Rose?” Her mother called from downstairs. “Hurry up, love, we’re leaving for Grandpa and Nana’s in five minutes!”

“Coming, mum!” Rose called back, slamming the wardrobe shut.

_Maybe I want to go like this. In my underwear. It is nice underwear, after all._

Rose threw herself down onto the bed, muffling her groans within her pillow. She had decided that she was going to ask Scorpius out on a date tonight. Not a friend-date. A date. An actual date, where she wanted it to progress to another one. And another one. Until they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

_Rose and Scorpius. Girlfriend and boyfriend._

Rose smiled against her pillow at the thought.

It was strange, trying to deliberately focus on her thoughts. It took time and effort; it wasn’t easy to train herself not to think about her parents when she was making decisions. Or what the impact of her decision would be because she was Rose Granger-Weasley. It was now about what she wanted. What she, Rose — just Rose, wanted.

And I want Scorpius to go on a date with me.

He was coming to the Burrow tonight for Lucy’s engagement party. Molly (and Ginny) had practically adopted him as their own and Scorpius, having grown up in isolation without any other children his age, adored being at the Burrow and being around such a large family. Rose imagined him tonight, laughing with the others and joining in with them. She smiled against her pillow.

Flipping herself over, she stared at the ceiling and shut her eyes. She kept trying to imagine tonight: how she would ask him, what she would look like; but the images remained blurred.

“Rosie!” It was her dad this time. “We’re going to be late! And it’s Uncle Percy that’s hosting!”

“Just one minute, Dad!”

“Right, this is ridiculous!” Rose said to herself, storming over to her wardrobe and pulling out a random dress. She flung it on and stared at herself in the mirror. She began to check all of her angles, twisting her body and smiling at the sight.

“He won’t mind what you’re wearing.”

Rose spun around. Her mother was standing at her door, arms folded and a knowing expression on her face.

“Who won’t?”

“Scorpius.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Hermione laughed and walked over to where Rose was standing in-front of the mirror. She began to gently stroke her hair from behind. “Who else would you be making an effort for? The only people that you know who are going tonight are family and Scorpius.”

“I’m wanting to secure a date with one of Lucy’s fiancé’s relatives. Fine bunch they are, I’ve been told.”

Hermione shook her head, lovingly smiling at Rose.

“Of course, Rose,” she said. “Of course. Well, whoever the lucky boy is, we need to leave. Now. We’re late.”

Rose took one last glance at herself in the mirror before throwing on a pair of pumps and grabbing a bag.

“Ta-da! I’m ready. Let’s go.”

As they were walking out of her room, Hermione turned to her daughter and cupped her cheek.

“Don’t worry, all will be fine with _Lucy’s fiancé’s relatives_. I’m certain of it. I’ve seen how _they_ look at you.”

* * *

 

Rose entered the marquee with her family; she greeted Lucy and her fiancé with hugs, smiling at their glowing joy. Floating bewitched candles in jam-jars were hanging all over the marquee, illuminating the tent in a blue haze. Two long buffet tables were positioned against the sides of the tent, magically refilling with food whenever stocks were running low. Rose walked over to a golden drinks fountain that was spraying a red coloured beverage. She filled her glass before sitting down at a table situated by the back of the marquee.

She watched as her Aunt Audrey and Uncle Percy began to welcome guests with a beaming Lucy and her fiancé. She liked the way that they looked at each other; the love in their eyes. She began to subtly scan the crowd for Scorpius, taking great care not to let her eyes linger on anyone for too long. She frowned when, after minutes of searching, Scorpius was no where to be found.

“Doing alright, Rose?”

Rose turned to see Albus sitting himself down on the chair beside her. He had two strongly smelling drinks in his hand. Grinning at Rose, he offered her one.

“I won’t tell your mum or dad, promise.”  
  
“I know you wouldn’t,” Rose said. “Because you know that I’d tell them about the time that you Bat Bogey Hex’d Anderson.”

Albus snorted, handing her a drink. “ _Firstly_ , don’t worry — it’s not a strong kind. _Secondly_ , go ahead. Mum would be proud of me.”

“Well, it was a good one.”

They laughed before they sipped at their drinks, silently staring out into the crowds.

“How are you doing Rose?” Albus finally said. “Are you feeling… better?”

“I am,” Rose said. “I know… I know… that what happened with Delphi is still raw for you, so I won’t prolong what I want to say. But thank you for getting Scorpius to tell me what helped you. Because it’s helped me. A lot.”

“That’s what I wanted, Rose,” Albus replied. “And I’m glad to hear it. Genuinely. I’m always here for you, if you want to talk about any of that… _stuff_.”

“‘Stuff’,” Rose repeated, laughing. “That’s one way to put it.”

Albus grinned and playfully nudged her. “Hugo, James, and Lily will feel it one day. I’m just glad that we’re dealing with this… _stuff_ early.”

“That’s true.”

They sat in silence once again; it was not an awkward one, but gentle. Albus and Rose allowed themselves to appreciate their mended relationship and the support that they could give one another, just by knowing that they weren’t alone.

“Albus.” Rose broke the silence and turned to her cousin, her body tensing up.

“Yes?”

“Scorpius… I know… I know that a few years ago…”

Albus rolled his eyes at her, shaking his head.

“Oh, I’m very sorry,” Rose snapped, folding her arms and frowning. “You don’t need to be so rude. I know that he’s your best friend and I’m your cousin but I was only going to ask you a question.”

“Rose, you’re jumping to conclusions again when it comes to Scorpius,” Albus said. “I don’t find it awkward. I’ve had to spend years with him gushing over you. _Years_.”

“Does he…”

“That’s why I was rolling my eyes. You’re oblivious if you can’t see it.”

“I am not!”

“Rose, the boy looks at you like you’re the fucking sun and he’s spent his whole life in the darkness.”

Rose burst out laughing as Albus glared at her.

“What?! He does!”

“Sorry, I just find it funny. You trying to be romantic and poetic.”

“Fine! If you don’t want me to say anymore!” Albus moved to get up from his seat but was stopped by Rose pulling him back down.

“Alright, I’m sorry. That was beautiful, Albus.”

“Thank you, darling cousin. But, yes, in all seriousness — yes, Rose, he still does.”

Rose couldn’t hide the expanding smile on her face. Albus noticed it and grinned at her.

“Aww, little Rosie!”

“I’m older than you!” Rose paused, a seriousness washing over her face. “I just thought — because he doesn’t… he isn’t as vocal…”

“Because he’s sixteen now. He's no longer twelve years old. Relax, Rose. I’m his best-friend. I know.”

“Thanks, Albus,” Rose said, leaning her head against his shoulder. “When is he coming?”

Albus looked at his watch. “He’s apparating into the garden with his dad in five minutes.”

“Well, that’s a lot sooner than I was expecting.”

“I was going to meet him,” Albus said. “But I was feeling rather… _chilly_ when I went out there earlier. Do you want to go and wait for him instead?”

“That would be very kind of you, Albus,” Rose said, standing up.

“Oh, no. I said I’m just chilly. That’s all. Just chilly.”

* * *

 

She watched him arrive with his father. His immediate expression when he saw her instead of Albus was one of surprise, but his face quickly broke out with joy. He quickly turned to Draco and gave him a hug goodbye, nodding afterwards as Draco said something to him. Draco soon apparated away again, leaving them alone.

They walked up to each other, their paces increasing with every step. Finally, Scorpius threw his arms around her. “Hello!” He said. She could feel her stomach twisting joyfully as his hands rested on her back. “How are you? How was St Mungo's?”

“Fine,” Rose said, resting her chin on his shoulder. He smelt of the cologne that he always wore. Rose inhaled, not caring how silly she was being. “I told my mum and dad.”

Scorpius pulled away from her. Rose grimaced. She desperately wanted to pull him back. “Did you really! That’s wonderful, Rose. Truly.”

“It feels good. Having it off my chest with them.”

Scorpius nodded. “I know the feeling.” His eyes flickered over to the marquee. “Do you want to go inside? Has it been fun so far?

“Yes — well, no — not that it’s been bad … but I was thinking.. that we could maybe go for a walk instead? I was hoping that you could tell me about all of the constellation reading that you’ve been doing this month, now that our O.W.Ls are finished.”

Scorpius stared at her for a few moments, surprised. “Of course!” He finally said. He held out his arm for her. “Are you ready to hear some _contellamazing_ knowledge?”

“That’s your best one yet,” Rose said, taking his arm. “I am, _Scorpion King_.”

* * *

“Someone’s writing a book on us all. Did you know that?”

“On who?”

Scorpius moved his neck around to look at Rose. Warmth flooded to her cheeks as she realised that he had caught her staring at him; she quickly looked away and up at the starry sky above. They had walked for ten minutes away from the marquee — half an hour ago? Was it more than that? Time had melted for Rose — and plopped themselves down onto the grass, staring up at the sky as Scorpius presented his knowledge of the Black family to her.

“Have you not been listening to me, Rose?” Scorpius sounded hurt. Rose felt a painful ripping sensation in her stomach in response.

“No! I am…I was. Really. You were talking about your grandmother’s family. The Blacks.”

“And what about the Blacks?”

“Oh. Oh — just how they, y’know… liked pure-bloods. Most of them, at least.” Rose could feel his gaze on her face. Her skin began to prickle sensitively at the thought, electricity running through her and warmth flooding to her belly. She took a deep breath and turned to look at him. Their faces were mere inches apart as they lay on their backs. “You said something about a squib. A squib being disowned.”

“Sorry. I’m boring you. I - I shouldn’t have went into so much detail.”

“No, no!” Rose objected, moving her hand to reassuringly touch his face. He jolted slightly when her skin came into contact with his. “I love it. All the knowledge that you have stored.”

Scorpius smiled at her, relaxing. “If Voldemort and Bellatrix had any more secret spawn, I’m ready. Armed with my knowledge of constellations!”

“Ha! Let’s hope that no expecting parents got inspired by constellations. They’ll be feeling the full wrath of you.”

Scorpius did not reply; he continued to stare at her, his eyes gentle flickering all over her face. They moved lovingly, as if he were trying to memorise the sight.

“What?” Rose asked. “I don’t have anything on my face, do I?”

“No, no,” Scorpius said, smiling. “You’ve very beautiful, Rose. Your name doesn’t do you any justice. Roses aren’t nearly as pretty as you.”

_This is what I want. This is what I want. This is what I want._

“Would you rather I be called…Cassiopeia?” Rose teased, shifting her body closer to him. Their noses skimmed each other’s. “Thank you though, Scorpius. You’re quite the handsome young man yourself.”

Scorpius smiled before letting his eyes shut.

_Ask him. Ask him. Ask him._

“Scorpius?”

Scorpius’s eyes fluttered open again. He waited for her to say something.

“Rose?”

Rose’s breathing began to get heavy. She stared into his grey eyes — grey eyes that oozed comfort and warmth and kindness. _I want them. I want them. I want them._ Rose let her eyes wander up to his hair. She noticed that he had put product on it for the occasion, then down to his jaw line… it was so precise and defined…

“Rose?”

To his lips… his pale lips…

She pressed hers against his.

They felt soft. Delicate. She slowly moved them against his, pulling her body forward so that she was pressed up against his chest. Their eyes now both shut, Scorpius began to respond. He wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her even closer to him. He held her tightly as he worked his lips against hers, gently pulling down on her bottom lip. Rose moved her hands onto his face, cupping both of his cheeks. Scorpius pulled his face back and opened his eyes. They lay, staring at each other, in silence.

“Go on a date with me, Scorpius.”

Scorpius smiled before putting his lips on hers again. This time, it was more forceful. There was a hunger to him, a need to satisfy. His arms moved up and down the exposed areas of her back; there was a caressing way in which he did it, making her feel loved. Rose smiled on his lips.

“You didn’t even need to ask, Rose,” Scorpius mumbled against her, now moving his lips to her cheeks. He began to lightly kiss all over them. “I would have said yes five years ago.”

There were a lot of things that Rose wanted to reply with. A lot of things that she wanted to say. She knew that they both needed to get back to the marquee. But she had time after tonight— they had time. She was certain of that.

What she wanted was to continue kissing Scorpius for the final few minutes that they had. For Scorpius to continue kissing her back. As their bodies wrapped themselves around each other in the moonlight.

Rose wanted that, and so she did.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads-up: now that Scorpius and Rose are 'together', and since this is a one-shot collection of moments, there will be more time skips jumps from chapter to chapter :)


	10. Draco Malfoy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Draco gives Rose the Father/Girlfriend talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, I couldn't resist... I just love Dad!Draco way too much after CC!

“Does summer have to end? This is nice. So nice.”

The August sun shone down on Scorpius and Rose as they lounged in Hyde Park; he was laying with his head on her lap, eyes shut as she stroked his face and played with his soft hair. Scorpius would regularly open his eyes, squinting at the sun as he smiled at her, an unspoken invitation for a kiss. Rose would lean down, pecking his lips, and smiling back as her stomach rioted in warmness and fluttering.

Rose wondered how it was possible that she used to think teenage romance as childish and pointless. On-top of her sessions at St Mungo's going successfully, being with Scorpius the past two months had been _so, so_ wonderful and blissful. Lazy days, doing nothing but enjoying each other’s company and touch… days where they would explore Muggle London, away from the prying eyes of the Wizarding World, spending hours in bookstores… more active days, where they would spend hours on his bed, kissing and fiercely wrapping their arms around each other…

“Nothing to say to that, huh?”

Rose snapped out of her memories, looking down to see Scorpius’s grey eyes peering up at her. She grinned at the sight of him, unable to stop herself from leaning down and giving him a quick kiss.

“Sorry — what did you say? I got a bit distracted.”

“Ah, over the _Bathilda_ biography that I recommended to you last week? I do too. A lot. But I must say, I am a little offended. When I’m around you, I’m only focused on you,” Scorpius teased.

“For your information, I was actually thinking about yesterday afternoon.”

“When we had that heated discussion about the _Ilvermorny_ houses?”

“Mmm hmm, of course.”

He grinned up at her in response, shutting his eyes again as Rose resumed playing with his hair.

“But really, what were you saying?” Rose asked.

“Just how absolutely offended I am that you aren’t looking forward to spending every day with me.”

“I didn’t say that!” Rose exclaimed. “I only don’t want summer to end because we won’t get to do this for a while. Be completely away from prying eyes — in the muggle world! Everyone already knows that we’re dating — which is great! Really great — but everyone stares. I could do without that.”

“I don’t mind. I guess I’m just used to people staring for the wrong reasons. Because they used to think I was Voldemort’s spawn. Now they look because I’m lucky enough to be dating you.”

Rose frowned. She looked down at his kind, gentle face and felt a strong feeling of intermingled sadness and anger.

“Or because of your mention in the _Prophet_ ,” Rose finally said. “Achieving the highest O.W.L result in _History of Magic_ ever recorded. On-top of all Os.”

Scorpius’s eyes opened to look at her, his cheeks reddening. He’d been ecstatic with his results and had nearly screamed when Professor McGonagall sent him an owl hours later to inform and congratulate him on his _History of Magic_ result. He had also similarly nearly screamed the following day when he found out that his father had given the _Prophet_ permission to write an entire article reporting on his achievement.

“It was more than a mention, Rose,” Scorpius said flatly. “And they were probably also gawking at you too, with your straight Os.”

Rose beamed down at him, grinning proudly at the mention of her results. The happiness in her face melted Scorpius’s; he felt warmth rushing all over his body and, driven by the urge, moved his head up to give Rose a slow, lingering kiss.

“Maybe you are right,” Scorpius mumbled against her face. “It will be a tragedy when summer ends.”

“The greatest.”

“But it’s not over yet,” Scorpius said. “We still have a week left and I…” Scorpius paused, unsure of how to continue.

“What?” Rose asked, nervously straightening up and moving his face from her lap. Scorpius sat up, his gaze fixed onto the grass. “You can tell me anything.”

Scorpius looked at her, laughing. “It’s not anything… _serious_. Or bad. I just don’t know how you’ll react.”

“Try me.”

“Dad wants to go out for a celebratory dinner tonight. Well, another one. I’m surprised he hasn’t thrown me a full-scale party yet.”

“And why exactly would you not know my reaction?” Rose said, a hint of irritation in her voice. “That’s great. Of course that’s great! Why would I ever think any different?”

“Because he doesn’t just mean us two. He wants you to come. Just us three.” Scorpius said, nervously unbuttoning and buttoning the sleeves of his shirt.

“Ah.”

“There’s no pressure, honestly. I know that you’ve met him and it’s been civil — well, awkward. Horrendously awkward. But civil. I can imagine why you wouldn’t be keen to have dinner with…”

“I’m going,” Rose said firmly, interrupting him. “I like your dad. Well, I don’t know you dad. But I should get to know him, if I’m dating you. You’ve been over to my house for dinner, after all. And to the Burrow! It’s only fair.”

“Are you sure, Rose? I love him. He’s my dad and — my only family. I love him. But well… when it comes to me… you know how he is. He’s a little… intense. Albus said he destroyed his kitchen when Harry asked if I was Voldemort’s son,” Scorpius said, an anxious edge to his voice. “I just don’t want to put you in an uncomfortable situation.”

“I’m going,” Rose repeated. “Draco Malfoy doesn’t put me off. And, besides, we can gush over your _OWL-fully_ amazing results.”

“Did Albus tell you that one? I knew that he secretly liked it!” Scorpius said, beaming. “Alright then, if you want to go. I just… I need to warn you. Dad’s a bit… protective over me.”

“That’s not a bad thing.”

“No, Rose… remember when we were watching those muggle films? And you were complaining about that trope? Where the dad gives the daughter's boyfriend _the_ talk?”

“Are you trying to say that you think Draco Malfoy is going to give me a father-girlfriend talk?”

“It, uh, wouldn’t surprise me, Rose.”

“Then challenge accepted,” Rose replied. She smirked at him and leaned her face into his, skimming her lips over his. They both breathed heavily onto each other’s faces. “But I can’t promise him that I’ll always have you back on time.”

* * *

“Did you purchase an extra copy of the _Prophet_ from the day of Scorpius’s feature?” Draco asked Rose with a firm politeness. “If not, I have some spares that I can give to you.”

“Dad!” Scorpius whined, putting down his menu. “You’ve already framed it!”

Smiling at his son, Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded copy of the _Prophet_ article. His eyes bulging in horror, Scorpius quickly reached over and grabbed it from his dad’s hands.

“You’re mortifying, dad,” Scorpius said, stuffing the article into his pocket. “Rose already has one.”

Draco nodded, looking back down at his menu. He had been civil and polite so far; Rose had noticed, however, a slight coldness to him. Rose wasn’t clueless: she knew that it wasn’t because she was a Granger-Weasley. His coldness was because of her being _Rose_ — the girl who rejected his only son and didn’t treat him with much warmth for years.

Draco’s eyes flickered as Rose placed her hand on-top of Scorpius’s on the table. She noticed him watching and gave a small smile.

Shifting in his seat, Draco cleared his throat. “Scorpius has been offered a conditional job offer with the _Wizarding Histories_ publishing and research company. Did he tell you, Rose?”

“Dad!” Scorpius cried out. “We only found out when I came home from London!”

“Scorpius, that’s amazing!” Rose beamed. “What N.E.W.T results do they want?”

“Three Os, one of which must be in History of Magic and two Es,” Scorpius replied, a nervousness in his voice. “I think I can do it. If I work hard this year and next.”

“You are more than capable, Scorpius,” Draco said. “But I will be proud of you even if you don’t meet the conditions.”

Scorpius smiled at his dad, relaxing. “I knew that,” he said.

“And Rose, what do you want to do once you leave Hogwarts?” Draco asked.

“I think I’ll apply for one of the Ministry’s post-N.E.W.T programmes,” Rose said casually, trying to hide the stress that this decision had been causing her. Scorpius sensed it. He moved his hand on-top of hers and began to gently stroke it. “We’ll see. I have time.”

“That’s very true,” Draco replied. He looked up behind them; a young wizard in long, maroon robes had approached their table. Rose noticed a lack of confusion on Draco’s face. “Can I help you?”

Scorpius and Rose both turned around to look at the man. He had warm red hair and a smooth, boyish looking face. He was looking at Scorpius with an interested glimmer in his eyes. Scorpius stared back, surprised and confused.

“Are you Scorpius Malfoy?” The man asked with a strong American accent.

“Uh, yes, I am,” Scorpius said. “How can I help?”

“I’m Michael Hellgrove. I work for my father, Ernest Hellgrove. Have you heard of him?”

Scorpius inhaled. “Yes - yes I have.”

“He’s dining here tonight and wanted a quick word with you. He read about your O.W.L results and was very, very impressed. Would you like to come over? It’ll only be for a few minutes — we don’t want to disturb your dinner.”

“Wow — of course!” Scorpius exclaimed. He turned to his father and Rose. “I’ll be right back. I’ll explain later.” He raised Rose’s hand and kissed it as he quickly rose from his chair. He hurried off, excitedly babbling to Michael as he walked.

Rose turned to Draco. He was staring at her, an amused expression plastered across his face.

“You organised that, didn’t you?”

Draco smirked. “They contacted me this morning about wanting to meet with him. He’s the writer of one of Scorpius’s favourite books on American Wizarding History. I told him that we would be here tonight and asked his son if he could take him away for a few minutes,” Draco said. “I wanted to talk to you. Without Scorpius being here to object.”

“Well, I’m here,” Rose said, folding her arms. “And Scorpius is gone. Go on. He’ll be back soon.”

“I won’t need long,” Draco said. “My father — my father tried to stop me from being with someone that I loved very, very much. I’ve tried hard, throughout Scorpius’s life, to not repeat the mistakes that my father made with me. I wouldn’t do the same to my son, when it came to someone who he wanted to be with. I won’t do that with Scorpius.”

“I’m glad to know,” Rose replied.

“You both have my blessing, Rose,” Draco said. “He’s my son — my only son and family. I would do anything for him. So, forgive me, if I sometimes find it a bit… difficult to warm up to someone who was rather cold to him.”

Rose opened her mouth, ready to defend herself. Draco raised his hand, silencing her. “But I also know the power of forgiveness for past wrongs,” Draco continued. “I’ll always be protective towards him — but I understand that you make him happy and have, from what he’s told me, changed.”

Rose nodded. “I was wrong about your son, Mr Malfoy.”

“Draco,” he corrected her.

“Draco. And this summer — with him, it’s been amazing. I could only hope to make him half as happy as he makes me.”

“I can ask for no more then,” Draco said. “He’s — Scorpius has been through a lot. Too much. If I had even dreamt of what he’s had to face when he had been born — it would have terrified me. But he’s come through it, optimistic and achieving. I don’t think he’ll ever be able to understand how proud I am of him.”

“He loves you too,” Rose said. “And I think he knows — to an extent, at least. He appreciates it, Draco.”

Draco’s eyes glimmered at Rose’s words, overcome with emotion. “Just — please be careful with him. Don’t smash up his heart. I often fear that Astoria’s death already wounded it badly.”

“I think that you would need to be quite heartless to deliberately wound a heart like his,” Rose said.

“He has his mother’s heart,” Draco said softly. “But also her strength. Just please, do right by my son.”

“I promise you, Draco, I would never want to hurt him.”

“Thank you, Rose,” Draco said. They stared at each other for a few moments as an understanding connected them. Finally, Draco smiled. “And one last thing.”

Putting on a deep voice, Rose mockingly said, “‘I’ll have him back by eleven, sir.’”

Draco stared at her.

“Sorry — a Muggle reference,” Rose said quickly. “What is the last thing?”

“One or the other is fine — although I would prefer my name, of course. But do not — please do not name any of my grandchildren _Draco Ronald._  I beg you.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be a little bit more serious!!


	11. Those Three Words

Scorpius knows where to find her.

Their spot. The hidden corner of the lake where he used to come and sit, alone, when his mum had died. His solitude wasn’t driven by an embarrassment at crying in front of Albus. He just never wanted to burden him; he knew that Albus still had his own personal difficulties with Harry.

It was nostalgic, then, the sight of her as she sat alone on frosty grass, her legs pulled up against her as she gazed out at the lake. Scorpius watched, lovingly, as she adjusted a tartan blanket over her body. He looked down at the one that he had brought for her, smiling. Rose was never the one to be looked after.

He began to analyse her face, trying to gauge how she felt. She looked deep in thought and Scorpius could not tell what kind. _Am I a bad boyfriend?_ He thought, paranoid. _Should I be able to tell how my girlfriend is reacting to this article about her?_

Albus had given Scorpius the article to read when he had arrived at breakfast. He had read it without emotion. He didn’t get mad, or frustrated, nor did he feel the urge to set it on fire (as Albus had done with many of Rita Skeeter’s articles in the past). He just knew that he needed to find Rose and be there for her.

“I know you’re there,” Rose said quietly. “I heard your footsteps.” She looked up at him, forcing a smile.

“Oh,” Scorpius replied, walking over to her. He sat down and wrapped his arms around Rose. Resting her head against his shoulder, she shut her eyes and began to relax. “Your results were OWLfully good so I know not to patronise you. You know why I’m here.”

“Yes, I do,” Rose said, the edges of her mouth curving up into an unexpected smile. “Your puns don’t get enough credit. That one will never get old.”

Scorpius grinned, pulling her closer to him. “It’s a form of art,” he said. “But really, Rose. Are you alright? Talk to me.”

He heard her take a deep breath as she pulled her blankets closer towards them. “Yes, I am,” she said finally. “I read it this morning. I’m not… I’m not upset. I’m not angry. It wasn’t particularly nasty, was it?”

“It wasn’t kind either.”

“I’ve grown thick skin,” Rose replied dryly. “You, me, and Albus. We’ve all had to. So what if Rita Skeeter wrote an article analysing my decision to apply for the Wizengamot’s Post-N.E.W.T programme? Comparing me to my mother? Hinting that, if I get it, it’ll only be because of who my parents are? I got all Os. I know the truth. She writes trashy articles and bad books. I don’t care.”

“You shouldn’t,” Scorpius said. “You’re right, she’s an awful writer. Did you know that she failed three of her O.W.Ls?”

Rose sat up, looking at Scorpius in disbelief.

“Completely true,” Scorpius said, grinning at her. “See — the perks of having a history geek as your boyfriend!”

She leaned into him and put her lips against his. They began to kiss softly — Rose needed his comfort and touch at that moment. Scorpius sensed it, responding by stroking her cheek with his thumb. Rose pulled away, her forehead now resting again his.

“I’m also sure that Rita Skeeter doesn’t get to do that,” Rose said, smiling. “Is everyone talking about it?”

“If they can get a hold of The Prophet. I think Albus is going around setting copies on fire.”  
  
“Definitely cousin of the year material,” Rose replied.

Rose turned to look at the lake again. Scorpius looked down at her face when he felt her body tense up again. Rose seemed deep in thought and, Scorpius was sure, such thoughts didn’t seem particularly pleasant. Scorpius frowned and began to comfortingly rub her shoulder.

“If there’s anything else…that’s bothering you,” Scorpius began. “You can tell me. If you want. I’m here for you, Rose.”

He watched as Rose gave a small smile. Her gaze continued to remain fixed out at the lake until she finally looked Scorpius after several, long moments.

“I don’t believe that I’ll get into the programme because of my mum,” Rose began, her voice steady. “I’m not going to belittle my achievements like that. I got all Os. I’m on the Quidditch team. I’m a prefect. Never had detention, either. I’m — let’s face it — probably going to be appointed Head Girl next year. And I got none of that through being a Granger-Weasley. But not everyone is going to believe that.”

“And so what if they don’t, Rose? As if Professor McGonagall would choose you because of who your parents are! They’re as ridiculous as the Ministry during the 1709 Giant Wars!”

“I didn’t think I cared,” Rose said. “But what if I start work, and everyone thinks that? And I need to prove myself. Again. And no one can look at me as Rose. I’ll never be Rose to them. I won’t get to befriend any of them either because they’ll think that I don’t deserve to be there.”

“You have lots of friends here, at Hogwarts,” Scorpius retorted.

“You saw how quickly people turned on Albus,” Rose said. “It’s not that I would be upset, Scorpius. It’s just… annoying. Really annoying.”

She shook her head, laughing to herself.

“What?”

“I wish eleven-year old me was here to witness this. She would have given me a slap across the face and told me to get on with it,” Rose paused, smiling. “But then again, eleven-year old me wouldn’t be kissing you. It’s just — I need to prove myself when I already have proven myself. It’s just really unfair.”

“It is, Rose,” Scorpius replied. “But don’t feel bad for feeling annoyed, alright? And, I think…”

Scorpius paused; when Rose turned to look at him, his mouth was still hanging open. She frowned once she realised that he wasn’t planning on continuing.

“What is it? What were you going to say?”

They stared at each other in an uncomfortable, tense silence. Scorpius forced his eyes not to wander away from her as Rose stared back at him, baffled. Finally, Scorpius took both of her hands in his.

“When I first…fancied you, I don’t think that it was that serious. I liked you — I liked your fierceness, your confidence. I thought that you were the most beautiful person that I’d ever seen,” Scorpius began. “But it wasn’t anything more. I don’t think that happened until we started becoming friends. The trips we had. Before — before I liked Rose Granger-Weasley. Really liked Rose Granger-Weasley. But as I got to know you, I didn’t fall in love with Rose Granger-Weasley. I fell in love with _Rose_. The funny, confident, caring, evolving, beautiful Rose. And I know that when you get on the programme — because you’re going to be the most qualified applicant and we both know it — that will happen too. With the others. They’ll think of you as Rose Granger-Weasley at first. But when they get to know you, as Rose, it’ll change. I know it will. Just like it did with me. Because I love you — _Rose_. I love you.”  
  
Rose fiercely grabbed the sides of Scorpius’s head with her hands, pulling his face towards her. She kissed him passionately, biting down on his lower lip and pulling their bodies closer together. She moved her head back for a moment and opened her eyes again.

Scorpius followed, his grey eyes staring back at her. “I love you,” he repeated again, as if he loved nothing more than to hear those three words coming out of his mouth.

“I love you too,” Rose said quietly. “And I think, Scorpius, we always will.”  
  
 “I think so too.”

 


	12. Patronus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, you all might not believe me here, but I promise that this had been planned as the next chapter before Pottermore released the test!! How spooky is that? I originally had different plans for their Patronuses but liked a few on the long list of possible results that I found! You can read about why I choose each Patronus at the end :)

“And the academic side of school.. do you feel as if everything has been going well?”

Rose nodded at Sean. It was now May and Rose had been attending meetings with him for a year. It no longer made her uncomfortable — discussing how she was feeling. Both Rose and Sean felt that she had been making steady progress — so steady, in fact, that her weekly sessions had been changed to fortnightly. She would always be Rose, daughter of Hermione and Ron; that didn’t, however, mean that it would always be a wholly bad thing.

“A lot better than last year,” Rose replied. “A lot less stressful. We don’t have our N.E.W.Ts until next year, so I mainly play Quidditch, help fifth years to revise, and get paranoid incase my Ministry application results have came in yet.”

_And spend time kissing and touching Scorpius._

Sean chuckled and put his clipboard down. “That does sound infinitely better than last year. I heard that Hogwarts has been bringing in guests for the sixth years. The so-called famous Patronus expert, Aidan Byrne, is coming in tomorrow, isn’t he?”

“He is,” Rose replied, shifting in her seat. “But I’m not going to his class. Neither is Al or Scorpius. Someone keeps sending in things about us to the _Prophet_. None of us can be bothered with any subpar psycho-analysis from Rita Skeeter if we can’t produce one.”

“There’s no shame in not being able to produce one, Rose.”

“Oh, I know,” Rose replied. “I’ve never been able to and it didn’t stop me from getting all _Os_. But Uncle Harry said that he’d give us a private lesson over the summer. I’ll try again then and do it.”

“Some wizards — some _very_ good wizards — are never able to produce one. ”

“That’s true. But I’d quite like to be a _very_ good wizard who _can_ ,” Rose said, grinning. “But later, Sean. Away from prying eyes.”

* * *

 

“And then! It just came out of my wand! I didn’t even _feel_ anything. I thought you were supposed to _feel_ something!” Milly gushed. She had just came back from their Patronus lesson with Thaminah; both girls had managed to produce one and had immediately hurried off excitedly to find Rose.

Rose had been — genuinely — happy for them. But she wasn’t foolish enough to deny her jealousy that they didn’t need to worry about rats telling Rita Skeeter that they were simply too unfocused and unable to produce one.

“I think it depends,” Rose replied, lounging on the grass as they sat beside the lake. Scorpius was lying with his head on her lap, his eyes shut as the sun beamed down onto his face. “But that’s great, honestly!”

“And what was your Patronus then, Milly?” Albus asked, a strangely anxious edge to his voice.

“A little grey squirrel!”

“And I got a Dolphin!” Thaminah exclaimed.

Albus ignored her as he kept his gaze on Milly. “Did it match with anyone’s?”

“Match with anyone’s?”

“Oh, you know — how they say that your soulmate has a matching Patronus,” Albus replied, trying to keep his voice casual.

“Oh,” Milly said, her face reddening. “I — I don’t think so. Did you see anyone, Thaminah?”

Thaminah shook her head. “Nope, Mils. I’m afraid you’re going to go soulmate-less for another day,” she said. “Did you hear about Laurence Taylor and Laura Miller in the year above us last year?! Their Patronuses matched! He had a tiger and she a tigress and then…”

“They were caught shagging by the lake two weeks later by Filch,” Rose interrupted.

“How romantic,” Albus said dryly.

“Wonder if it’s on this spot…” Milly teased him. Albus grinned back at her, comically shuffling away from where he had been sitting on the grass.

Rose looked down at Scorpius and noticed a rather large grin on his face. She smiled back, unable to hide her pleasure at how he looked. Leaning down, she softly kissed his lips.

“What’s so funny?” She whispered.

His eyes flickered open, a smile still plastered across his face. He opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by the sound of Professor McGonagall’s voice as she towered over them.

“Mr Potter, Miss Granger-Weasley and Mr Malfoy — would you please come with me to my office,” she said, frowning as Scorpius awkwardly rolled off of Rose’s lap.

“Uh, of - of course, Professor!” Scorpius said nervously. “Have we, uhm, done anything?”

“Well Professor McGonagall is going to be suspicious now, Scorpius,” Albus said, sitting up with Rose. “If we had done anything. We haven’t, by the way, Professor.”

“I believe you, Mr Potter, since the Ministry have yet to report of any stollen time-turners,” Professor McGonagall said sternly. Scorpius winced as Albus looked down at his feet, desperately trying to hide the small smile that had appeared on his face. “Are you three ready?”

Rose, Albus, and Scorpius nodded as they began to follow Professor McGonagall to her office.

Scorpius took Rose’s hand as they walked into and through Hogwarts, something that he always liked to do. He had spent so long being reluctant to physical affection that he didn’t care if he was mocked for it by other students. In their defence, however, students had been caught having sex on Hogwarts grounds. Handholding was definitely on the bottom of the Bad Public Displays of Affection Table.

“Ugh. Can you two please not?” Albus hissed under his breath. “You both rub it in to the rest of Hogwarts. We get it. You’re both in love. No need to prance it about.”

“Albus…” Scorpius began, his voice wary.

“Shut up, Albus,” Rose snapped, her face feeling warm with anger. Albus had always happily accepted their relationship; Rose wasn’t going to allow him to take a sudden, unexplained U-turn. “We’ll do whatever we please.” She threw her arms around Scorpius and planted a big kiss on his cheek. “Look away if you’re bothered.”

“You know fucking what Rose —”

Albus was interrupted by Professor McGonagall stopping in-front of them to open her door. He glared at Rose who, arms folded, looked determinedly away from him. Scorpius gave him a sympathetic look and rested a comforting hand on his shoulder as they entered Professor McGonagall’s office.

The three of them sat down at her desk, staring at her with confused expressions. Finally, Professor McGonagall cleared her throat and began.

“Your Heads of House told me that the three of you were excused from Mr Byrne’s lesson on Patronuses today.”

“Our parents wrote in letters!” Scorpius said quickly. “We weren’t skipping class, Professor!”

“I am aware of that, Mr Malfoy,” McGonagall continued. “And I sympathise with your situations. Whoever has been providing information to _The Daily Prophet_ will be found and punished accordingly. I’ve brought you here, however, to tell you that Mr Byrne has made an offer to the three of you.”

“An offer?” Albus repeated.

“Mr Byrne has kindly offered to give you all a private lesson — tonight, straight after dinner.”

“A private lesson! With Aidan Byrne! Aidan Byrne!” Scorpius exclaimed, almost jumping out of his seat. Rose looked over at him, shaking her head and smiling. “Of course! Oh — oh wow, I’ll need to freshen my robes for this…”

“It’s only because of who we are, isn’t it?” Albus said, ignoring Scorpius. “He wants to say he’s that taught us. A Potter, Malfoy, and Granger-Weasley.”

“Mr Potter!”

“Albus!” Scorpius said. “Don’t be silly! He’s being silly, Professor. Of course we would be honoured to go!”

“You and Rose can go alone then.”

“Gladly,” Rose snapped back at him.

* * *

 

“Really, I don’t understand his problem,” Rose ranted to Scorpius as they walked, hand-in-hand, to the room that Aidan Byrne had been using. “He’s been acting so weird lately. We’ve been going out for nearly a year and he hasn’t had a problem with it until now.”

“He doesn't have a problem with _us_ , Rose,” Scorpius began. “He’s just… I don’t know.”

“You do know, but you’re a good friend.”

“And you need to be a good cousin to him.”

“I am a good cousin!” Rose said, stopping and removing her hand from Scorpius’s. “I’m not going to sit back and take his cheek, Scorpius.”

“I’ve spoken to him, Rose — about controlling his frustration,” Scorpius replied, moving closer to her and wrapping his arms around her waist. “But he was there for you this time last year, when you were going through a difficult time.”

“I didn’t constantly snap at him!”

“I know you didn’t, Rose,” he said. “But he’s… he’s been finding things hard lately. Just bare with him. He’ll get over it soon.”

Rose stubbornly looked away from Scorpius, crossing her arms. Scorpius moved his hand to underneath her chin and pulled her face gently back to him. Rose didn’t resist and began to loosen up her posture, sighing.

“Will he be alright?”

“He will be,” Scorpius replied. “But let’s not talk about it right now, especially since he told me not to tell anyone. I’m meeting _Aidan Byrne_! My inner geek — and, well, outer geek — needs to be calm.”

Unable to resist smiling lovingly at him, Rose took his hand as they continued to walk to Aidan Byrne’s room. They opened the doors and, to their surprise, found Albus standing and talking to a long haired ginger man. They stopped their conversation when Scorpius and Rose halted at the door, unsure if they were intruding.

“Ah, Mr Malfoy and Miss Granger-Weasley!” Aidan said, stepping away from Albus to welcome them in. “Please come in and relax.”

“This is an honour,” Scorpius said. “I’ve read all of your books.”

“You have?” Aidan said. “I’m surprised your father would have let you.”

Scorpius tensed up, looking away nervously as he became unable to meet Aidan’s gaze. “Oh, I think he’s gotten over it.”

“Gotten over what?” Albus demanded.

“I did some research on Draco Malfoy not being able to produce a Patronus until he was thirty,” Aidan said. “Nothing personal. But everything that happens, or does not happen, in this room is completely confidential.”

“It was twenty-six, actually,” Scorpius said quietly. “You were wrong — he tried to produce a Patronus after I was born… once he had the confidence… and he managed to.”

“How fascinating!”

“Yeah, very much so,” Albus said. “Can we start now?”

Aidan Byrne made them stand apart and shut their eyes. Aidan had closed the windows and put the room into darkness. They were given one instruction: to focus on the lead up to their happiest memory. Everything that lead up to it. No small detail could be left out. When the moment was finally about to arrive, they were to open their eyes and whisper — Rose had raised her eyebrows at that one — the charm.

Rose thought about the lead up to her O.W.L results; the happy memory wasn’t the results themselves but, rather, the moments after when she had been thrown by her parents into her a hug and when she had opened her eyes to see Scorpius there, beaming back at her.

When the memory finally approached, Rose whispered “Expecto Patronum…” with her wand out. She felt a rush inside of her. Her eyes opened.

In front of her, a silver light in the form of a swallow flew out of her wand and around the room. Rose felt tears well up in her eyes, overcome by joy and pride.

_I’ve produced a Patronus!_

Suddenly, another silver light appeared — a mockingbird. She followed its trail back to the source — Scorpius. His face illuminated by the light, he watched the bird flying around as tears leaked from his eyes. If he had even noticed, he didn’t seem to care.

His Patronus moved over to Rose’s. They watched as their birds whizzed around before moving their own gazes to each other. They smiled, knowingly.

Another gleam of light came from beside them — Scorpius and Rose broke away from staring at each other and turned to watch as a silver spirit in the shape of a large, fluffy dog pranced around the room.

It quickly disappeared, as had Rose and Scorpius’s Patronuses. The pair had been too distracted to prolong them. The lights suddenly came back on and Rose, overwhelmed, ran over to Scorpius and flung her arms around him.

“I did it!” Rose squealed as he lifted her up, goofily spinning her around. “I knew I could, Scorpius!”

“Did you see that?!” Albus demanded, his eyes still wide. “I definitely managed to do that! I couldn’t work out what it was!”

“A Chow Chow dog,” Aidan informed him.

Albus’s mouth hung open in response. Scorpius and Rose, still wrapped up in each other’s arms, both looked over and grinned at him.

“Aww, Al!” Rose said. “That’s the cutest.”

“Guess I’ll take it,” Albus said. “What did you two get? I never saw.”

“A swallow!” Rose said. “It works, it completely works! They’re elegant and great flyers! Oh, I’m so happy! I could make another one, right now!”

“What did you get, Scorpius?”

“My mum’s,” Scorpius said, a wide smile on his face. His lips finally began to tremble; Rose noticed and cupped his face with her hand, gently stroking his cheek. “A mockingbird. She always sang, after all.”

Aidan Byrne flickered his eyes up and down Scorpius and Rose. “I understand why you both had birds,” he replied.

Rose let out another squeal, pulling Scorpius even closer to her. Albus’s face fell as he watched, his eyes moving to the wall.

“Lucky for some,” he muttered.

* * *

 

Rose couldn’t sleep when she returned to her room. She was too overcome with joy — a complete, bursting pride in herself and her achievement. She messily scribbled a letter to her parents, her grandparents (on both sides), Dominique, and her other close cousins to tell them of the good news.

“What was Albus’s Patronus, Rose?” Milly quietly asked her from her bed to Rose’s left.

“Albus’s?”

“Uhm, yeah,” Milly replied. “Sorry — I was just wondering, since you only mentioned yours and Scorpius’s… several times…”

“They really were beautiful, Milly,” Rose said, smiling. “I can’t wait to produce it again.”

“Albus’s patronus, Rose?”

“Oh, right, sorry!” Rose said. “It was a little Chow Chow.”

Milly smiled up at the ceiling. “That’s cute. Very cute. Right, I’m tired. I’ll see you in the morning. Goodnight, Rose. Don’t stay up too late.”

“Night, Milly.”

Rose stayed up as she repeated the memory of her Patronus over and over in her head. She longed to pick up her wand and cast another charm. It took everything within her, every sensible part of her, to not be stupid enough to cast one into her sleeping dorm.

Scorpius, however, wasn’t feeling very sensible.

Just as Rose was drifting off to sleep, a silver light caught her eye. She sat up, turning towards it in her bed. As it came closer to her, Rose noticed that it took the shape of a mockingbird.

 _Only Scorpius could produce his first Patronus and then be able to control it mere hours later_ , Rose thought, beaming proudly as she watched it fly around her.

Rose lay back down as the mockingbird finally flew down beside her, hovering above her pillow. She could feel its warmth, its protection.

“I hope you’re still awake,” Scorpius’s voice said softly, coming from the mockingbird. Rose had to cover her mouth to prevent herself from waking the others up with laughter. “I’m sorry — I just had to try it out. I couldn’t resist. I’ll know in the morning if it has, when you’re glowering at me for waking you up. Alright, I’ll let you sleep. I need to finish the book I’m reading on famous historical Patronuses. Goodnight, Rose. Love you.”

“Love you too, Scorpius.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be a /bit/ more smutty to make up for this cheese-fest.
> 
> Apologies for the Chow Chow. I couldn't resist!! Sam Clemmett is such a cutie, though! In my defence, they are nick-named a "Puffy-Lion Dog" (aka his Gryffindor side) and, from wikipedia, "this breed of dog has many strong loyal bonds with friends and family, but the Chow Chow dog is usually overly protective of one or two main family member(s)."
> 
> The Sparrow I felt fitted Rose's elegance and skill. I also wanted her to match Scorpius's. I think he would likely take after his mother's, who fitted a mockingbird from the implication we got that she sung a lot to him :) Also, funnily enough, on stage, Anthony Boyle actually sings a lot of Scorpius's lines. For example, "palace of love" is sort of sung like paaaaalace of loooove.
> 
> But, yeah, feel free to ignore the Chow Chow.


	13. Argument

“Rose, slow down! You’re going to make me completely out of breath!”

Glancing over her shoulder, Rose smirked at Scorpius and continued to pull him forward through the deserted halls of Hogwarts. The winning supporters were outside celebrating Gryffindor’s victory over Slytherin in the cup, the losers moping in their common room. Rose would be going out to celebrate later, of course. She was part of the winning team. But now — right now, she wanted to do other things.

When they finally reached the broom cupboard, Rose thrust the door open and clumsily pulled her and Scorpius inside. Shutting it, she put two hands on either side of Scorpius’s face and pulled him into a passionate kiss.

They’d been gradually exploring each other’s bodies since Christmas break and Rose was unapologetic in her love for it, for him, for _them_. Getting pleasure from Scorpius was the most unique experience for her: it made Rose feel powerful, strong. And she loved pleasuring him back, making him feel good.

They’d yet to have sex. They would, soon. But not right now — not at Hogwarts. Rose at least wanted her first time to be on a proper bed.

Breaking away from their kiss, Scorpius pulled her over to the wall and placed her against it. She hungrily lifted her leg up, pressing herself against his crotch as he continued kissing her again.

“Help me take my trousers off,” she mumbled against his lips. “There’s too much clothing for what I want you to do to me.”

Scorpius nodded and began to unbutton her Quidditch trousers. “I know that this is supposed to be one of your prizes for winning, but I don’t think I’ll be able to make you happier than how you looked touching that cup.”

Laughing as she helped Scorpius to remove her trousers, Rose leaned her head away from his and cupped his cheeks. “I doubt that, Scorpius.”

Rose began to teasingly press her pants against his crotch again; she watched, satisfied, as Scorpius’s face began to fluster with redness.

“I also need this horrible jumper off of me too,” Rose said, lifting it over her head so that she was now only in her pants and bra. “All yours to give me my victory prize.” 

Looking at her in awe, Scorpius began to leave a trail of kisses from her jaw to her stomach. Still unhappy with the current amount of exposed skin, Rose unhooked her bra before pulling Scorpius’s own Quidditch jumper off of him. She kissed and sucked on his neck as he worked his way down her, rubbing her erect nipples against his bare chest.

When his kisses finally reached the edge of her pants, Scorpius looked up at her. “We’ve been doing this for a while now, Rose. So I would be, uhm, correct in sensing that you’re not in the mood for us to take our time here?”

“I have a victory to celebrate,” Rose said, smiling down at him. “But not too fast.”

Nodding, Scorpius began to move her pants down to her knees. Rose quietly gasped underneath her breath when she felt the cool air hit her; she bit her lip and continued to leave kisses on Scorpius’s neck.

Rose’s leg hitched up against him, Scorpius gently trailed his hands over her folds and up towards her clit. Rose let out a louder moan when his long fingers finally reached it; she tilted her head back, adjusting herself so that she could be closer against him.

“Go,” she said, her voice horse. “Please, Scorpius. Go.”

He began to make slow circles on her clit as his other hand moved up to one of her breasts. He started to simultaneously rub her nipple, kissing her neck and jawline.

Rose continued to let out uneven moans as she pressed herself even closer to Scorpius. She felt herself getting wetter and wetter with every touch that his finger made against her.

“Faster, Scorpius. Please. Faster.”

Scorpius increased his speed; at this point, he had to practically keep Rose steady and up against the wall himself. He suddenly stopped and Rose let out a moan of displeasure. They looked at each other, eyes wide and alert. Rose panted heavily, unable to form words.

She felt his fingers trail down to her folds. He traced them as he did before, separating them apart before teasing her hole with one of his long fingers. Rose pushed her hips against his body in a weak attempt to get him to enter her; he moved his fingers back up to her clit as a distraction. Her body responded, jolting against him as she threw her head back once again. He could feel her getting more flustered, more worked up, more wet; she could feel a build up of pleasure from within her.

Scorpius dragged his fingers back down and pushed one into her. Rose vibrated against him, digging her nails into his thin, bony arms. He pulled in and out, slowly increasing his speed with every thrust of his finger.

Rose, head thrown back and mouth hanging open, moved her own hand down and started to make fast, vicious circles on her clit. Scorpius put another finger into her and pumped in and out as fast as he could.

“Scorpius…” Rose moaned out as she felt the heat building within her increase. She felt Scorpius move his fingers even deeper into her; giving up, she let herself go. Her head now against his shoulder, she cried out onto his skin as she tensed around his fingers. She didn’t even realise that she had moved to wrap both of her legs around him. Scorpius removed himself from inside of her, keeping her up as she recovered her own breathing.

They stood like that for minutes — Scorpius stroking the back of her head, kissing her bare flesh all over. Finally, Rose lowered herself down; swaying a little when her legs, feeling like jelly, hit the ground.

“Better prize than the trophy,” Rose said as she stood, naked with her pants hanging around her knees.

Scorpius looked away from her, slightly embarrassed by her compliment. Rose gave him a gentle smile and cupped his face, moving it back to her. She leaned in and kissed him. “Thank you,” she said. “And now, it’s your turn.”

“My turn?” Scorpius spluttered out. “But I thought — if Slytherin lost —”

“Do you really think that I’m going to make you leave her looking like that?” Rose said, motioning down to the bulge in his pants as Scorpius’s face went red. “You know, I’m disappointed that you never made a pun out of my Patronus..”

“Your Patronus?”

“Yes, especially after the Easter Break,” Rose said, smirking. Scorpius stared at her blankly. “A _Swallow_.”

Scorpius’s blank expression changed into one of mortification.

“Firstly, my puns are completely wholesome and family-friendly. Secondly, didn’t you make me agree that we would keep any mention of puns and Bathilda Bagshot far, far away from our sex life?”

“I’d make exceptions…”, Rose began before her voice trailed off, along with her eyes.

“What?”

Scorpius turned to look at where Rose was now staring. A few steps away from them, lying on the ground, was a pair of bright blue checkered boxer pants.

“I know those pants.”

“Uhm, should I be worried, Rose?”

Rose ignored him, moving towards the boxers.

“You don’t recognise them?”

“They’re nice, Rose. While I did read a chapter on Faris Spavin, twentieth Minister for Magic, and his fondness for charming his undergarments to sing, I am not a boxer connoisseur.”

Rose rolled her eyes. “Their Albus’s.”

“Ah.”

“I got him them for his Christmas,” Rose said. She became distracted by a small pin lying next to them. Bending down, she picked it up and turned it over. Rose let out a gasp.

“What is it? I mean — this place… it’s quite, ehm, infamous. I know that he’s your cousin… but if you see any…uhm.. bodily fluids… don’t…”

“This is Milly’s pin!”

“Double _ah_.”

“He’s seeing her! They were in here — doing stuff!” Rose spun around, expecting to see Scorpius as shocked as she was. He stared back at her, unaffected and wary. “You knew!”

“Rose…”

“You knew! That they were going behind my back!”

“I wouldn’t phrase it like that, Rose…”

“My cousin and one of my best friends!” Rose exclaimed. “And they didn’t even have the decency to tell me! How long have you known? How long has this been going on for?”

“It’s been a… _gradual_ thing, Rose. I thought that you would have noticed by now.”

“Don’t imply that I’m stupid,” Rose snapped.

“I’m not, Rose! Of course, I’m not.” Scorpius said to her, moving forward to place two comforting arms around her waist. Rose jumped away from him. “Albus told me not to tell anyone, I’m sorry. They only made it official last week. They were going to tell you soon.”

“We told him straight away!”

“Rose, I love you. But you are overreacting and being ridiculous here,” Scorpius said, his voice rising. “I don’t see why you’re angry.”

“She’s my best friend! And he’s my cousin!”

“Albus could sway the same! About us!” Scorpius retorted angrily. He watched as Rose moved over to where her Quidditch outfit lay on the ground, fumbling it back on. “Rose, just calm down. Please. We don’t even need to go to the celebrations if you don’t want to see them.”

“Oh, so their public now?”

“No! Rose, please. What are you doing - leaving with his pants and her pin?”

“I’m going to confront them.”

“Rose!” Scorpius said, now close to being as furious as he had been during his fight with Albus in their fourth year. He moved in front of the door, putting his arms out. He stared at her angry face and desperately tried to calm his own down. He didn’t like being angry — at Rose, at Albus, at anyone. “I’m not letting you pass. What was it that they said in that Muggle film we watched? You shall not pass, Rose Granger-Weasley!”

Rose didn’t laugh.

“Move out of the way, Scorpius!”

“Rose, no!” Scorpius replied, now grabbing onto Albus’s boxers to get them off of her. Rose tugged them back, ripping them in half. She let out a huff in frustration and let them drop. “Look! You’ve ruined poor Albus’s boxers!”

“Let me leave, Scorpius,” Rose hissed. “Now.”

“Fine, go,” Scorpius said, moving aside and opening the door for her. He watched her leave, slamming the door once she was gone.

* * *

 

To Rose’s surprise, it didn’t take her _that_ long to calm down.

A walk around the back of Hogwarts, away from the celebrations, did the trick. She soon felt guilty — Scorpius was right, she had overreacted. Maybe she was just surprised. Maybe she didn’t like being in the dark. Or not having noticed it. Regardless, Rose knew she had overreacted and knew that she owed her boyfriend an apology.

She went back to the empty Gryffindor common and placed Milly’s pin by her bedside. She then left to join the celebrations; Milly would never know who found it by the boxers with ‘A.S.P’ stitched onto the inside.

Rose embraced Milly and acted as if everything was normal all night. She didn’t see her with Albus either. Not that Rose expected to see Albus there — she doubted that even Milly could convince him to attend a Gryffindor celebration.

Rose tried to enjoy herself. But she couldn’t help but think of the absent Scorpius, likely repeating the incident over and over in his dorm, for the entire night.

* * *

“Hi,” Rose said, plopping herself down beside Scorpius the next morning. He had been sitting at the edge of the Slytherin table, alone, and contentedly reading his book. He looked up and gave her an uncomfortable smile. “What are you reading?”

“ _A History of the Department of Mysteries_ by J.N. Haigfield.”

“Is it any good?”

“ _Rose_.”

“Scorpius, I’m sorry,” Rose said quickly, placing her hand on top of his. “I over-reacted last night. I was just… surprised. And I didn’t like not realising it. I was tired too, I think, after the Quidditch match and the training… I know that that doesn’t excuse it. But I’m sorry, I am.”

Scorpius sighed, loosening up and shifting closer to her. “It’s fine, Rose. I think if Albus didn’t have so many years to prepare for us finally going out, he probably would have done a lot worse than tearing up your underwear.”

“I love you,” Rose said softly, leaning her head on his shoulder.

“I love you too, Rose,” Scorpius replied, wrapping his arm around her waist. “I don’t like arguing with you. And I’m not going to, no matter how you reply to this. I swear. I just want to know… did you confront Milly?”

“No, I didn’t,” Rose said. “I’m going to let them announce it to me in their own time.”

“I knew you would,” Scorpius said.

They sat like that — her head wresting on him, his arms around her — for several minutes in silence, appreciating being back on good terms; they way, they felt, it was meant to be.

At last, Rose moved her head and looked up at him. She was smirking. “You know, I never got to return the favour last night. We could… quickly… before class…”

Scorpius winced.

“What?”

“Well, you obviously know that Albus isn’t here. Have you had breakfast yet?”

“No. Why?”

“I don’t think Milly’s at the Gryffindor table either.”


	14. Trio

“Albus! Albus, open the door! I know that you’re in! I can see your hand on your mum’s clock!”

Rose only wanted, on this delightful June morning, to play a nice game of Quidditch with her boyfriend and cousin (Milly was supposed to join them but had, sadly, cancelled on them at the last minute). A fun morning. A morning full of fun. The funnest of fun. And, yet, here she was, on her knees, shouting into the Potter’s letter box.

“Albus! Scorpius wants to play Quidditch with us! Will you open the Dumbledore-damn door!”

When her shouting was met with no reply, again, Rose let out a loud huff and stood up. She’s had enough of Albus Potter already today and she isn’t going to let him ruin her morning any more.

Tapping the door with her wand, she says the Potter’s password (“Speccy” — it was James’s choice, this week) and stands back as the door unlocks itself. The bolts unleash, it slowly creaks open, and Rose is met with the sound of loud, hysterical sobbing.

Rose stops and doesn’t enter any further. Her mouth goes dry and her heart begins to ache slightly. She’s never heard a sound so raw, so bad.

“Albus?” She finally says, her voice strained. “Albus, where are you? Are you alright?”

Rose hears shuffling from the next room — the kitchen. The sobbing stops being so loud; she can still hear gasps of cries, as if Albus is trying desperately to keep it in.

“Albus?”  
 “Go away, Rose!” She hears Albus’s voice cry out.

“No,” Rose replies loudly and firmly. She takes a deep breath before venturing into the Potter’s home. “You’re not ok and I’m not just going to leave you here alone.”

The sound of a bang, followed by glass hitting the floor and shattering, suddenly echoes around the house. Rose knows immediately — _he can’t control his magic_. Rose is now panicked; Albus _should_ be able to control the mixture of his emotions and magic. He’s always been able to. Always. Even when he had problems with his dad.

Without hesitation, Rose dashes into the kitchen. She finds him there, Albus, sitting on the floor. Glass surrounds him. Half of a smashed glass is still placed on the counter.

He’s sitting with his legs pulled up against him, his arms wrapped around them. His chest is making an awful noise — it’s a strangled one, full of pain and torment. He finally looks up at her, his face a blazing red and tears streaking down his cheeks.

“Rose, please just leave. _Please_.”

There’s only pure desperation in his voice, but Rose doesn’t hesitate. “No,” she says. “I’m not leaving you here like this.”

 _Bang_! This time it’s the vase on-top of their dining table that he smashes. Rose flinches as she feels a bit of glass slice her check. She ignores it, turning to Albus. He’s stares at the smashed up glass, horrified, before he lets out another wail.

Rose takes out her wand and quickly cleans up the glass scattered across the floor. Her eyes glance over to Albus again as she’s finishing up the spell; he’s back into his previous position, except now he’s shaking. Rose drops her wand and throws her arms around him.  
  
“You’re alright, Albus,” she says, her face against his as she begins to stroke the side of his head. “You’re alright.”

Albus doesn’t protest or lurch away. He continues to cry and shake as Rose holds him, tightening her grip with every wail he lets out. Rose begins to kiss his head every time he does it. He finally begins to move his body towards her, resting his head against hers. She doesn’t know how long they sit like that, together. His crying, his shaking, the noises he makes… it feels like hours for Rose. Slow, agonising hours.

Finally, he speaks. “Did Milly tell you?” His voice is hoarse and rough and Rose wonders, painfully, how long he’s been sitting here like this for.

“Milly?” Rose asks, surprised. “No, she didn’t — what about her? What is it, Albus?”

“I broke up with her,” Albus sobs. “I broke up with her last night.”

“That’s ok!” Rose says quickly, perhaps too enthusiastically. It’s not because she’s pleased — Albus and Milly made each other happy. She just wants to assure him. “That’s ok! I won’t take sides, I promise.”

“It’s all my fault.”

“Albus, if you were unhappy being with her — that’s fine! You don’t need to feel bad.”

“I didn’t want to break up with her, Rose,” Albus says. His voice breaks at the end, more sobs escaping from his lips as he begins to shake again.

Stunned, Rose gives herself a few moments to reply. She’s terrified of saying the wrong thing — not with Albus like _this_. She doesn’t understand — how he could possibly be crying. She tries to imagine if she broke up with Scorpius. If she would ever do it even if she didn’t want to. If she was hurting him, of course… but Albus and Milly seemed fine…

“Is it because of it being made public?” Rose asks. “Al — Albus, you can’t let them make you unhappy. You need to apologise to Milly and explain. She’ll forgive you. She’s very understanding.”

Albus begins to furiously shake his head, his eyes clenched shut as if he’s in physical pain.

He then says it. A word, a name — that makes Rose feel physically sick.

“Delphi.”

Rose freezes. She has the sudden urge to pick up her wand but she resists, not wanting to scare him. Keep calm. You need to keep calm. For Albus.

“Delphi? Albus, she’s in Azkaban. If she — if she got out — they would know…”

“She’s not out!” Albus says. “I - I - I can’t…”

“I’m here for you, Albus,” is all Rose says. She pulls him closer to her, giving his head quick kisses. She doesn’t even think about what she’s doing — it’s instinctive; an instinct for someone she loves.

“I can’t trust her!” Albus says. “Milly — I — I couldn’t… she kept making me paranoid.. I _couldn’t_ trust her. I can’t trust her, Rose. Delphi — she lied to me. I can’t trust Milly. I couldn’t trust Milly. I couldn’t trust Milly. I couldn’t trust Milly.”

“Albus! Albus, it’s alright!”

“No, it’s not, Rose! I couldn’t _trust_ her! All because of Delphi — all because of her…”

He smashes a lightbulb this time. Rose doesn’t flinch; she bundles them closer together, clinging onto Albus. She can feel herself tearing up, nausea filling her stomach again.

Delphi. The woman who lied to a fourteen year old boy. Who manipulated him and pretended that she liked him. She flirted with him. When all she wanted to do, to do with Albus, was to indirectly kill him. She tried to kill him, from what she’d overheard her parents say.

Albus’s first love. A lying, evil, murdering manipulator.

“I understand, Albus. I do —”

“You don’t, Rose. You don’t. You have Scorpius. He’s never done that to you. And I’m glad. I’m glad that you have each other to be in love with.”

“You have us too,” Rose says.

Albus shakes his head. “The power of love and friendship can do a lot of things, Rose. A lot of great things. But it can’t fix what she did to me. And how I’m going to have to live with that. It’s already coming back to haunt me — Milly, Milly…”

“St Mungo’s… You could try St Mungo’s…”

“Oh, I am, Rose,” Albus says. There’s a hint of his characteristic dryness behind the pain; he’s still there. Albus is still there. “It’s not a magical cure. Magic won’t help me, it won’t undo what she did. Not even the Ministry offered me support…”

Rose nods as she rubs his arm. “I know,” she says. But she doesn’t know — she doesn’t know how to make him feel better, what to suggest…

Albus doesn’t reply to her. His tears aren’t flowing as quickly now — so she lets him sit there, wrapped around her, as he squeezes the final few out.

“What you did with Milly was brave, Albus,” Rose finally says. Albus lets out a dry laugh, shaking his head. “No, Albus, I mean it. You knew — you knew that you were only going to hurt her and cause her pain — if you weren’t able to trust her. You knew that. And you decided, despite the pain, despite how much you didn’t want to… to not let her share some of the pain that you feel. That’s brave, Albus. And wonderful — you’re a good, good person. You’ll always have that over her.”

Albus doesn’t protest but he doesn’t seem particularly moved by it either. Rose notices that his lips are red and chapped — she gets up, grabs a glass from the cupboard and moves to the tap. When she turns around, Albus is now up too. Rose walks over to him, the glass out for him to take. When he does, he immediately puts it back down again and pulls her into a fierce hug. She’s squished against him as he strokes the back of her hair. When he finally lets go, he kisses her forehead.

“Thank you, Rose,” Albus says. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Albus,” Rose replies. “I’m always here for you.”

“I know.”

* * *

 

Scorpius gave them an hour before he apparated from Malfoy Manor to the Potter’s. He was, at that moment, Malfoy the Anxious. It wasn’t because he thought that they were in danger or that something had happened to them. Perhaps he would have thought that if Albus hadn’t apparated to his house during dinner last night, distraught and announcing that he had broken up with Milly. Scorpius knew, because they had been friends for so long, that Rose’s delay was because of it.

He chapped on the door before noticing that the protection spells had been unlocked. Frowning, he pushed it open and gently called out to them.

“Albus? Rose? Are you both home?”

He took a hesitant step inside, wand raised and looking around him. And another. Then another again. Until he saw the living room door pushed open.

Albus was lying asleep on one side of their cream sofa, a tartan blanket placed messily on top of him. On the other side, Rose was scrunched up into a tight ball — Albus had clearly pulled the blanket off of her while sleeping — as drool dripped from her sleeping mouth.

Scorpius smiled at the sight, relieved of the support that his best friend and girlfriend would always have. Walking into the room, he summoned a blanket and gently placed it over Rose. She stirred a little but did not wake from her peaceful slumber. He then sat down on the opposite sofa, pulling a book from his bag and eagerly diving into it.

Rose gradually woke up half an hour later. She jolted up at the sight of Scorpius, rubbing her eyes as he stared at her with an amused smile.

“What.. how..”

“You and Albus were an hour late in meeting me so I came here to find you both. Did you have a nice nap?”

Rose nods. She glances down at the extra blanket on top of her and smiles. Carrying it in her arms, she walks over to where Scorpius was and throws her arms around him.

“I’m sorry for missing Quidditch and not saying anything. I didn’t mean to fall asleep… Albus just said he wanted a quick power nap and I guess I dozed off…”

“It’s fine, Rose,” Scorpius says, kissing her forehead. “Is he — is he alright?”

“No,” Rose replies. “He’s not.”

Scorpius nods. “He came to me, last night… he broke up with Milly…”

“I know.”

“And Delphi…”

“I know.”

Scorpius sighs and shakes his head. “I think — I think, when we were fourteen, and when we came back from that _adventure_ … there was an adrenaline rush. We didn’t understand how much it would impact us. Hey! _Wow, cool! I met Bathilda Bagshot and almost peed my pants!_ But it still does.”

“Will he be ok, do you think?”

“Yes, I think so. One day,” Scorpius says, staring at Albus as he sleeps. He turns to Rose, looking at her with an intensity in his eyes. “I know that soon… since my dad is leaving for his overnight stay in London for the appealed court hearing for Theodore Nott… that’s we’ll be sharing a bed together. And, I should let you know, in advance… so I don’t scare you. I still have nightmares. About that world I had to live in. They aren’t as frequent but they — they still happen. I don’t want you to wake up in a panic.”

Rose takes Scorpius’s face in her hands, pulling him towards her. She gently kisses him. “That’s alright,” she says. “I’ll sit up with you, all night if I have to.”

“Well, we could do more than just sitting,” Scorpius says boldly.

“What are you now — _Malfoy the Horny?_ ”

“Ugh. Rose. Scorpius. Enough,” Albus’s groggy voice comes from behind them. They break apart, grinning at him.

“The one time that I try and be…” Scorpius pauses. He changes his voice, putting on a quintessentially Scorpius and hilariously deep one. “ _Sexy_.”

“Scorpius!” Albus groans.

Grinning at him, Scorpius rises from the couch and walks over. Albus stands up too and the pair embrace, hugging each other with fierceness and a need for comfort.

When they pull away, Scorpius says, “How are you?”

“Slightly better,” Albus replies. “For now.”

“That’s not a bad thing,” Rose chirps up. “This time next year, we’ll have sat our N.E.W.Ts and left Hogwarts. We need to enjoy it — what we have now.”

“How cheesy,” Albus taunts. He ducks the pillow that Rose throws at him. “Alright, alright! Sorry, Rose. Very poetic.”

“Thank you, dear cousin.”

* * *

Draco arrived mere seconds behind the Granger-Weasleys and the Potters. They turned to look at who had just arrived, a look of surprise washing across all of their faces when they saw him.

“Draco,” Harry says, stepping forward to shake his hand as Ron glares from behind him. “Is everything alright?”

“I need to check your house for my son,” Draco says. “Scorpius said Rose and Albus were late in coming over. He said that he was coming here but never returned.”

“They probably decided to play Quidditch here,” says Ginny. “Come in and we can call them in from the garden.”

The five of them open the unlocked door and walk into the house. They move into the living room where Albus lies on one sofa, sleeping against a pillow. Scorpius and Rose are wrapped up asleep in each other’s arms on the other sofa.

“I’ll go wake up Rosie,” Ron says quickly, rushing forward.

Hermione pulls him back. “Ron, she’s just asleep. Let them sleep.”

The three of them, as they lay sleeping, didn’t look like the children of five of the key characters in the Second Wizarding War. Despite Albus being haunted by the lasting impact of Voldemort’s daughter; despite Rose regularly being kept up at night over how people might react if she doesn’t or does get Head-Girl; and despite Scorpius still waking up in sweat over the words Voldemort and Valour, in that moment — they didn’t look like Rose Granger-Weasley, or Albus Potter, or Scorpius Malfoy. They were just Rose, Albus, and Scorpius. Two cousins; two best friends; and two souls madly in love. Three teenagers, about to embark upon their final year at Hogwarts, in need of the simplest of things — a good, hearty nap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love, love, love the idea of Rose and Albus growing closer after CC (I wrote another apology fic on this), so I wanted to play with them a little here. And I don’t believe that Albus would automatically get over what happened with Delphi. Obviously, he *could* someday. But I still think it’ll be something that will cause him trouble at first, esp with trust-issues. 
> 
> The next chapter, which will hopefully be uploaded this weekend, is definitely more/completely Scorpius/Rose orientated. Let's just say that Draco has his court hearing to attend to ;)


	15. Firsts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Scorpius and Rose are 17, so over the age of consent in the UK (16)

When Professor McGonagall arrived at Rose’s doorstep that evening, Rose knew why immediately.

Milly’s older sister, Louisa, had been made Head Girl in her seventh year. Rose always remembered the excitement rolling off of Milly’s owl to her on that summer night; Professor McGonagall had showed up at their house to ask if Louisa would accept being Head Girl.

“Your marks have been impeccable; you’ve never had detention; have been a valuable and trusted prefect for Gryffindor house. Hogwarts would be extremely lucky to have you as Head-Girl for this year, Miss Granger-Weasley.”

Rose had to use every bit of strength inside of her to contain her excitement and to not squeal in-front of her headmistress. Her happiness felt like it was vibrating underneath every inch of her skin and she worried, for a quick, senseless moment, if a Patronus would explode out of her. Finally, with every effort to keep her voice clear and controlled, she said, “Of course, Professor. These is no higher honour.”

“Excellent, Rosie!” Ron exclaimed, pulling her into a hug on the sofa.

On her other side, Hermione joined in and warmly kissed her forehead. “I’m so, so, proud of you, Rose.”

“I’m sorry about them, Professor,” Rose joked, laughing. She had mainly said it as a distraction to the tears forming in her eyes.

“Oh, it’s very alright,” Professor McGonagall replied, smiling fondly at the family. “When I asked your Head Boy earlier, I was convinced that his father was going to start floating.”

“Scorpius,” Rose said, her grin now wider. “It is Scorpius, isn’t it?”

“There’s no protocol against me telling you. I only can’t tell the preceding student who I will be visiting next. Yes, Miss Granger-Weasley, Scorpius Malfoy was offered and accepted the role of Head-Boy.”

* * *

 

The rest of that night passed in a blur for Rose. Her happiness and pride was intoxicating; her parents had quickly thrown her a gathering, attended by her family and friends. She had spent most of the night smiling, being hugged, teased and congratulated.

“I kneeeeeeew it!” Dominique had squealed, letting go of Rebecca’s hand to pull her into a hug. “I am so, so, so proud of you, Rose.”

“Well done, you swot!” James had fondly exclaimed as he high-fived her.

“I’m expecting special treatment, you know,” Albus had said. “Since the Head-Girl is my cousin and the Head-Boy my best friend.”

The only thing missing, of course, was Scorpius. Not that it dampened her mood — that was impossible and she would see him soon. But she wanted to celebrate with him too. She had owl’d him with congratulations and an invite but his reply only arrived to her much later; apparently his father had dragged him out for a celebratory dinner in Wizarding Paris (his mother’s favourite restaurant, she had remembered) the moment McGonagall had left.

But she would see him tomorrow.

When his father left for the weekend to testify at Theodore Nott’s appealed trial, leaving an empty Malfoy Manor for Scorpius and Rose to enjoy.

* * *

“Mum! Dad! I’m about to apparate to Milly’s!” Rose shouted into the kitchen, the following night. She had hoped that they wouldn’t come out to say goodbye; it wasn’t that she was radiating suspicion or nerves. She wasn’t nervous — not  _yet,_ at least. But her parents were Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. If you can help locate Horcruxes, it’s more than likely that you can spot your seventeen year-old daughter lying about the fact that she’s going to loose her virginity tonight.

Rose grimaced when she heard the sound of her parents walking from the kitchen into the hallway to say goodbye. She nervously smoothed over her skirt and double checked that her overnight back was zipped up.

“You enjoy tonight, Rosie,” her father had said as he hugged her goodbye. “You deserve it and don’t forget how proud I am of you. It’s a pride that outweighs the day I got my own chocolate frog!”

“Oh, wow, it must be immense then,” Rose said, her voice slightly tense as he pulled away. She began to talk with a forced rapidness. “I’m nervous, I suppose. What a responsibility! A big responsibility!”

Her mother pulled her into a hug and stroked her curly hair. “That’s normal, my love, but you will do fantastically. I’m sure of it.”

“Dad!” Hugo called from upstairs. “We need to organise the Chudley Cannons tickets!”

“Coming, Hugo!” Ron replied. “Enjoy yourself, Rosie. I love you.”

“Love you too, dad,” Rose said as Ron began to walk up the stairs.

“I better head to Milly’s, I don’t want to keep her waiting,” Rose said to her mother. “Good luck tomorrow at the trial — not that you’ll need it, of course. At least you only need to stay for the day. Draco has to stay for the whole weekend.”

_Oh sugar, that was a mistake._

“I know,” Hermione said softly. “Rose…”

Gulping, Rose stared at her mother as her body tensed up.

“Rose, I know.”

“Know what?”

Hermione laughed gently. “You remind me so much of yourself as a little girl when you do that.”

“Do what?”

“Oh nothing, love,” Hermione said. “Enjoy your sleepover at Milly’s.”

Rose nodded, unable to speak. She forced a nervous smile before preparing herself to apparate. Her mother broke the silence, a slight hesitation in her voice.

“You’re seventeen Rose,” Hermione said quickly. “I’m not — I trust you to… be careful.”

To Rose’s utter amazement, she did not feel any horror or mortification. She felt relief and thankfulness. Mum, she thought, on-top of being Minister for Magic, is rather amazing.

* * *

Draco, as planned, had already left when Rose apparated to Malfoy Manor. Scorpius was outside waiting for her, his face beaming when she appeared.

“Rose!” He said, moving forward and pulling her towards him. “Our first hug as Head-Boy and Head-Girl.”

Rose leaned back and tilted her face against his. “First kiss too,” she said before she kissed him. There was an hungriness in it that surprised her and, from his response, in Scorpius too. She had felt this way before — when they did things. This was different. This was an overwhelming urge — no, an overwhelming _need_ , for him to be pressed against her and inside of her. For her to press her naked body against his.

“The first of many,” Scorpius said happily. He took her hand and they began to walk up to the entrance of the manor. “I’m sorry again that I — _we_ , my dad and I, couldn’t come last night. I never got your letter until I came back from dinner.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Scorpius. After all, we’re having our private celebration tonight.”

Rose noticed a slight blush on his face as his eyes fluttered away from hers. She stopped, taking his face in her hands. “I love you,” she said.

“I love you too,” Scorpius replied. “And tonight — tonight I do want to show you how much I love you in a new way. I’m just— please don’t be disappointed if I’m not… _good_. I don’t — I don’t have anyone to ask about how to… well…”

“Scorpius. I have no idea what I’m doing either. We trust each other. And we’ve got the added bonus of being in love and having explored each other before. And I’m sure, on-top of all that, you’ll come up with a brilliant pun.”

“I already told you, my puns are wholesome!” He grinned at her as love radiated from his eyes. He pulled her into a soft kiss before trailing his lips up to her forehead. “But, if you really want one, I can work on it. But Rose — promise me, if I do anything wrong or if it’s not going right…”

“Scorpius, if it’s uncomfortable — I’ll say. I’ll even make that face that you do when you’re reading a bad book. The little squint of horror.”

Scorpius nudged against her playfully as they continued to walk up and into the manor, hand-in-hand. He led her to his bedroom; she dropped her bags when she entered, turning around to pull his face against hers. She kissed him passionately, not wanting to and now unable to slow down. She took him over to his bed and they both collapsed onto it, wrapping themselves up in each other as they kissed. Their hands desperately moving all over each others bodies, ringing their hands through each other’s hair…

She could feel his hands slowly working their way up her bare legs. Rose tried to impatiently pull them up; she could feel Scorpius grinning against her lips in response, laughing softly underneath his breath.

“Do I have to start making the little squint of horror?”

“Or you could just say please.”

“ _Please_.”

Scorpius moved his hands up to her waist and began to pull the dress off of her. Rose helped him willingly, flinging it across the room once it was finally off. She pressed every exposed area of her bare skin against him, separating her legs and pulling their bodies tighter together. She felt his fingers lingering up to the edges of her pants and she pushed against him desperately.

  
She could finally — _finally_ — feel his fingers trail against the edges of her pants. She squirmed against his touch in anticipation, jolting when his fingers first came into contact with her flesh.

“Take them off. _Please_.”

He did as she said. He quickly pulled them down and continued to tease her skin with the tip of his finger. She could feel him at her folds, tracing the outline… separating them…

Rose leaned her head back against the pillow and shut her eyes. She heard him whisper ‘accio’ underneath his breath and then the feeling of a cold liquid being spread over her. She shuddered again.

“ _Please_.”

He inserted a finger into her and she flung her own hand down, making circles on her clit. He began to move it in and out of her slowly, increasing his speed with every moan that she made and to how her body responded. He soon placed another one into her, then another, as she continued to quickly rub herself.

Rose could feel herself getting warmer and warmer as a build up began inside of her. Scorpius noticed too and removed his fingers. She let out a little whine of displeasure, panting heavily as she listened to the ruffles of him removing his shirt and the sound of his zipper being undone. There were more sounds of ruffling and, when Rose opened her eyes again, he was lying over her with wide, cautious eyes.

“I’m ready, if you are,” Rose said. “Potion taken this morning. No little Ronald Draco’s will be on the way.”

“You know that I’d object to anything other than Bathilda, regardless of gender,” Scorpius replied.

They looked at each other in silence for a few moments; finally, they both burst out into a laughter filled with simultaneous anxiety and love.

“I love you, Scorpius,” Rose said.

“And I love you too.”

They stared at each other as they had done before. Scorpius took a deep breath and shifted himself slightly, moving his hand down to position himself at her entrance. Rose jumped slightly at his touch.

“I’m alright… just a new feeling.”

Scorpius nodded. He leaned in to kiss her and, as he did so, slowly pushed himself into her. Rose let out a little moan when she felt it, clenching around him. Scorpius shuddered and pushed into her deeper. 

“Does that feel alright?” He asked, his voice strained.

“It feels… wonderful,” Rose replied. “I feel awful for the Muggles who don’t have our types of lube.”

“I don’t know how they survive,” Scorpius teased, grinning.

He slowly moved himself out of her, then back in at an increased pace. He continued, quickening his speed and force with every thrust and every moan that Rose let out in encouragement.

“Scorpius,” Rose moaned out, her head flung back.

He continued to thrust quicker. Rose could feel the familiar tensing of her muscles, the build up inside of her. But this was different — now she felt the urge to be in control.

Rose moved her body up and put a caring hand onto Scorpius’s face when he froze. He pulled out of her and she pushed him down onto the bed, hovering over him and then guiding him back into her. Rose followed her instincts and urges, riding herself against him. Rose could feel her release coming closer with every movement that she made. She quickened her pace, throwing her head back as Scorpius moved up against her, his face now resting on her chest.

She finally let go, collapsing against Scorpius as pleasure continued to run through her body. She placed her chin on top of his head, panting heavily, until he gently began to manoeuvre them back into their previous position. He entered her again, grunting as he moved in and out of her; when he came, he collapsed onto her chest, breathing heavily as she ran her fingers through his hair.

They looked at each other and smiled.

“I’ve got nothing,” Scorpius panted.

“What?”

“Puns. I can’t think of anything.”

Rose fell asleep in Scorpius’s arms that night. She quietly wondered and hoped for the day when it would become a common occurrence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the late update - I was bombarded with so much work this week! I'm hoping to have a couple of chapters out this weekend to make amends :)


	16. Family

Rose settled into her role as Head-Girl with a natural ease. She excelled in her duties: no prefect’s rota was released late; all captains meetings started and ended on time; and all visitors to the school had been impeccably greeted by herself and Scorpius. By Christmas, however, as the holidays loomed, Rose began to feel worn down. Her N.E.W.Ts were quickly approaching and she was aware of the high conditions that her Wizengamot offer entailed. Rose welcomed the holidays, eager to spend time with her family and time alone with Scorpius.

It was the morning of the day before Christmas Eve and Rose was wrapped up in Scorpius’s arms as they lay in his bed. Draco was out visiting Gringotts with Mr and Mrs Greengrass, searching for something of Astoria’s. Rose had said a quick hello to Draco as he was leaving, before she and Scorpius had wandered upstairs to have sex.

Rose enjoyed the moments after it almost as much as the act itself. Lying against his chest as his hand gently stroked her face or when the roles were reversed and she would get to spend an hour moving her fingers slowly through his silky hair. They would normally chat about whatever was on their minds: school, books, the snow, their lives after Hogwarts. But Scorpius was quieter today; there was a distance to him that Rose noticed. It was slowly growing as the minutes went by.

“Scorpius?” Rose finally asked, moving onto her elbows so that she could look up at him. “Something is wrong. Talk to me.”

She felt Scorpius tense up against her. Rose leaned in to give him a reassuring kiss, taking his hands in hers.

“I’ve been wanting to ask you this for the past couple of weeks,” Scorpius said. “It’s — uhm — it’s a different kind of activity that I would like to do with you. I don’t want you to feel obliged…”

Rose stared at him blankly.

“I - I shouldn’t have mentioned it! I’m sorry. Lets talk about something else. Did you hear that Newt Scramander is publishing his early drafts of Fantastic Beasts? I mean — _wow_! I want to get it on the first day that it comes out! Will you come line up at the doors with me?”

Rose sat up and cupped Scorpius’s cheek. “Firstly, I will. Secondly, Scorpius, I’m willing to try different kinds of…. ‘activities’, as you put it. As long as we’re both comfortable, willing and safe. Plus, you’re really good at researching things. It could — it could work, I think.”

“ _What_?”

“What you just said — about a different kind of _activity_? I don’t know what kind you’re actually referring to but, just so you know, I am.. _uhm_.. interested.”

“Let’s backtrack like the Goblins at the negotiations of the 1752 rebellion. What did _you_ think I meant?”

“Well sex, obviously.” Scorpius paled. “Oh! You — you didn’t mean…”

Scorpius took a deep breath. “I was going to ask you if you wanted to visit my Mum’s grave with me tomorrow,” he said.

“Oh!” Rose exclaimed, flustered. “I thought — your mum died in August!”

“She did,” Scorpius replied quietly. “But it’s her birthday tomorrow. I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned it to you. I think it would be nice — I think Mum would have liked it, if I went with you. I know that it’s not the most upbeat of dates that we’ve had…”

Rose silenced him with a soft kiss. “Don’t be ridiculous, Scorpius. Of course I’ll go with you.”

* * *

That had been the easiest part for Rose: agreeing to go. She felt slightly nauseous the next morning. It wasn’t that his mother was a foreign topic for them: she’d been discussed, sometimes emotionally, in the past. But this felt different. Rose had to be there for him in a different way this morning and she was terrified that she wouldn’t be able to be _enough_. That she would be inadequate.

As she prepared to apparate to the graveyard, Astoria’s favourite lavender lisianthus flowers in hand, her mother stopped her.

Hermione pulled her into a warm hug, kissing her forehead as she pulled away. “It will be ok, Rose,” she said. “There’s no need to be anxious.”

Rose wanted to expand on her fears to her mother. But silence, stemmed from her nerves, prevented her. She could only nod before apparating away.

When she arrived at the graveyard, Scorpius was already waiting for her by the gates. He lay on the grass, matching flowers by his side, reading a book. When he saw her, he looked up with a brightening face and closed his book over. Rose approached him hesitantly. _What if he wanted to be alone? Why did I decide to come early? I shouldn’t have!_

“Sleep well last night?” Scorpius asked as he rose and walked towards her. He pulled her into a hug and Rose noticed the urgency of it and the comfort that he was seeking. She responded, stroking the back of his head.

“I did. Did you?” She asked, her voice shaky.

“I’ve had better,” Scorpius said, pulling away. He took her hand. “Coming?” Rose nodded.

Astoria’s grave was a short walk from the entrance. It was clearly in the more expensive area, hidden away by a short path leading up to it. Her grave was a simple but large black one. Gold writing had written on it:

_Astoria Rosemarie Malfoy, née Greengrass._   
_1982-2019._   
_A beloved mother, wife, daughter, sister, and soul._   
_You will always be in our hearts._

Scorpius and Rose laid their flowers in silence. He firmly gripped her hand, unwilling to let go as he stared at her grave. Rose desperately wanted to say something — _anything_ , to comfort him.

“She would have loved you,” Scorpius finally said. Rose looked up at him, a small smile had now appeared on his face. “I used to tell her about you — no, I would gush. She would always listen so patiently. I remember I told her that I said to you that you smelled of bread. She gave me the greatest advice that day, I believe: don’t ever tell a woman that she smells of bread.”

Scorpius tried to laugh but failed. His voice began to break, tears leaking out from his eyes. He quickly grabbed a handkerchief from his pocket, dabbing quickly at his cheeks. Rose had already wrapped herself around him, squeezing his arm and kissing his tear-stained cheeks.

“I would have loved to have met her,” Rose said. “She would have been very, very proud of you.”

“I just wish — I wish that she was here,” Scorpius sniffed, his voice broken and struggling. “I want to tell her about being Head-Boy and all of the new facts that I’ve learned about Hogwarts. I want to speak to her about books. She won’t be able to come to the graduation feast in June. She won’t ever get to read any of the work that I write through my job. She won’t be at my wedding. She won’t get to meet her grandchildren…”

Scorpius was unable continue. Grief overwhelmed his speech as he let out a muffled, pained whine. Rose felt as if a large sword had been rammed through her stomach, piercing out through her back. She continued to do as she had: wrapping herself around him, kissing him, letting him know how loved he was.

“I know,” Rose said. It was all she could. “I know.”

They stayed like that until Scorpius’s tears slowed down. He wiped his red, snotty face with the cuffs of his jumper and leaned down to kiss Rose. “Thank you,” he said. “I love you.”

“I love you too and I’ll always be here — to do this,” Rose said. “If you ever want to visit.”

Scorpius nodded and resumed gazing at the grave. Finally, he spoke, “We found out the solution to the curse the summer after she died.”

Rose looked up at him, stunned. “You did?” It was something that had crossed her mind. She had always been torn between two worlds: a knowledge of the Muggle — where teenagers who dated at school rarely married, and of the Magical — where Hogwarts was statistically where you met your future spouse.

Scorpius nodded. “My dad — when he first met her, he invested so much money into finding a cure. It’s why I’ve always been so interested in history — I wanted to go back and find out anything that could save her. But there was never a cure. It was a solution. The person who cursed Mum’s ancestor was very smart. They knew that the Greengrasses had resources. But, more importantly, he knew that they valued blood purity.”

“The curse only affects pure-bloods.”

Scorpius nodded, staring at her hesitantly until he allowed himself to smile. “Yes. Only pure-bloods.”

Rose smiled back at him, a silent understanding coming between them, before Scorpius spent a few final moments with his mother's grave. Scorpius turned to look at her. “Ready to leave?” He asked. She nodded and they walked away, arms wrapped around each other.

* * *

 

Rose felt strangely numb when she arrived home. The loss of family, of parents, was always something that had been a lingering, indirect part of her life. It’s unavoidable when you’re part of a generation born after two wars.

Her parents had been lying on the sofa together, watching the television (Ron wholeheartedly approved of the Muggle invention), when Rose arrived. Hugo sat on the other sofa, flicking through a book on the history of the Chudley Cannons that Scorpius had gifted him for his birthday.

Rose looked at her parents, together and in love, and grinned. She thought of her mother on the day that she lost her virginity — trusting her daughter and respecting her decisions. She thought of her father’s speech the night that they had celebrated her being Head-Girl — the love, the adoration, the pride. She thought about her difficulties during fifth year and how, despite everything, he still could manage to make her laugh and feel like he would handle all of her problems for her. The sight of Hugo, relaxed and care-free despite his surname, made her smile.

Rose thought about the difference between how she felt getting her O.W.L results, being made Head-Girl, and receiving her job offer, and how she felt staring at her family. She also thought about how, in sixth months, she would be leaving Hogwarts; she didn’t know where she wanted to live — if her and Milly or Thaminah would get a flat or if she would stay at home.

Rose vanished the thoughts from her head and moved forward to nestle herself between her parents on the sofa. Being the daughter of Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger was something that she would always be grateful for.


	17. Friendship

“No, no, no! Albus, no! You’re doing it all wrong!” Scorpius said as he flung out his hands in frustration. “Newt would never shake my hand like that.”

“How am I supposed to bloody know how he shakes people’s hands?!” Albus retorted as he tried to stop the spread of the fond, amused smile on his face. His best friend _was_ a geek, but he was one who you couldn’t help but be mildly affectionate towards.

Scorpius’s obsessiveness had peaked with the upcoming visit of Newt Scamander to Hogwarts. Newt was Scorpius’s living historical hero (Bathilda, of course, ruled his heart for the living _and_ dead) and, as Head-Boy, he was given the honour of greeting him upon arrival with Rose. Rose proudly believed that any other greetings that they had made as Heads had gone impeccably. This, however, was different. Scorpius was determined to reach an “unprecedented perfection of hospitality”, as he had put it.

“I don’t know why you’re so worried, Scorpius,” Rose said. “It’s not as if you’ll be conscious for it. You’ll be on the floor the minute he walks into the room.”

“Hey!” Scorpius said. “I’m glad to see that my loving girlfriend has so much faith in me. I didn’t faint when I saw Bathilda, for your information. But we’re digressing! Stand in position! Let’s rehearse this again.”

Albus hunched over and put on a deep, hoarse voice, “Ah, Scorpius Ma-a-alfoy! What an honour it is to meet little Geek Jr!”

“Albus!” Scorpius whined. He playfully reached over to swat his arm, missing as Albus jumped out of the way. “I only have one shot at this, you know! He’s nearly at the wizard life expectancy!”

“You should tell him that,” Albus replied with a grin.

Rose laughed at Albus’s retort, shaking her head. Scorpius turned around to look at her, a look of mock betrayal on his face. “I’m sorry,” she said, walking towards him and wrapping her arms around his waist. “My cousin is _awful_.”

“The worst,” Scorpius replied, glaring over at Albus. He heard a rumble from Rose’s stomach and frowned. “Are you hungry? When does dinner start?”

“Ten minutes ago,” Albus replied. “I’m hungry too, by the way.”

“You should go to dinner,” Scorpius said. “You’ve always been good at greeting guests, anyway. I’m going to stay here and practice with my wonderfully consenting and obliging best friend.”

“Did you not hear me? I’m hungry too!”

With a slight, repressed grin on his face, Scorpius ignored him and leaned down to kiss Rose goodbye. “I’ll see you at dinner. We won’t be too long as I’m quite peckish too.”

“As am I, Scorpius!”

“I’ll see you then,” Rose replied, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. She turned to Albus. “Good luck, Albus.” She barked out a laugh as she turned to walk off, the sound of Albus impersonating Newt (“Ah! I remember when Porpentina and I were young and in love!”) fading out into the background.

Rose hurried off to the Great Hall, instinctively looking around her for any signs of trouble or misbehaving. She made her way over to the Gryffindor table when she arrived, the smell of food making her realise just how hungry she was.

“Hey,” she said to Thaminah as she reached over to put some ham onto her plate. “I got caught up with Albus and Scorpius — rehearsals for Newt coming, of course.”

“Ah,” Thaminah replied briskly. Rose looked at Thaminah to see a strained look on her face.

“Are you alright?” Rose asked. “Where’s Milly?”

Thaminah remained silent as she looked down at her plate and bit her lip. “She won’t be joining us for dinner,” she said as her voice shaked.

“What? Where is she? What’s wrong?” Rose demanded, leaning into Thaminah’s face.

“Oh, Rose!” Thaminah burst into tears. “I didn’t know what to do! She told me that she wanted to be alone! I should have went with her!”

“Thaminah!” Rose said, wrapping her arm around her friend’s shoulder. “It’s alright, don’t cry! What’s the matter with her? Where is she?”

“Anderson,” Thaminah sniffed. “He was teasing her about Albus. Something about Albus being caught kissing another girl.”

“That’s a dirty lie!” Rose exclaimed, rising from her seat. “Albus said that he wasn’t ready to date other people! He’s a dirty little liar!” Her face flushed with anger, Rose preceded to storm out of the Great Hall. She heard Thaminah calling after her; she ignored her, furious. She wasn’t going to confront Anderson, anyway - at least, not now. She had to see Milly.

As she exited the Hall, however, Clarence Anderson was suddenly stalking towards her with his group of Ravenclaw friends. He had a snide, victorious expression on his face. “Alright, Rose?” He said. “I was telling your friend —”

He wasn’t able to finish. Rose had already promptly flicked her wand and sent him spiralling across the room. She didn’t acknowledge him once he was up in the air; she continued to storm ahead, not one strand of hair on her head having moved out of place. From the corner of her eye, she saw Albus and Scorpius entering Hogwarts. Scorpius called out to her before his eyes widened when he noticed Anderson on the ground. She ignored him, feeling slightly guilty afterwards. She would explain later, she told herself. She had to comfort her friend. 

* * *

She found Milly alone in their dormitory. She was lying under her covers as muffled sounds of pain vibrated out from her chest.

“Mills?” Rose said cautiously, sitting down on the edge of her bed. “Mills — I know that Thaminah said that you didn’t want to see anyone…”

“He’s your cousin, Rose,” Milly said quickly. “I’m not — I’m not going to drag you into this. I have no right to be upset. But I am. Just let me be. Please.”

Rose leaned over and slightly pulled the covers off of Milly, exposing the top of her arms. She began to soothingly rub them. “Anderson was lying, Milly,” Rose said. “I promise you — I swear to you, Albus isn’t involved with anyone.”

“I have no right to be upset,” Milly repeated. “He broke up with me almost eight months ago.”

“You’re allowed to be upset, Milly,” Rose replied softly. “You’re allowed to still have feelings for him.”

Milly let out a loud sob. She looked up at Rose, her pale cheeks red. “But I don’t want to have feelings for him.”

“I know,” Rose said simply. “But you do, and that’s ok. It will take time, but I know that you’ll get over it. You can and you will.”

“I just wish I knew,” Milly said as she sat up against the headboard. Rose moved up onto the bed; Milly scooted over, allowing for them to sit side-by-side and for Milly to rest her head on Rose’s shoulder. “Why he decided, all of a sudden. I thought — things were going fine. We were only dating for a few months! I didn’t — I don’t know what I did wrong.”

“Nothing. You did nothing wrong, Mills,” Rose replied. “You’re gorgeous and kind and Albus was very, very lucky to be dating you. Anyone would be. He just — it’s complicated, you know?”

“I think it was about her,” Milly said quietly. “Delphi.”

“Mills…”

“I know what the press were saying, when they did the investigation. He liked her, didn’t he? I — I don’t know, if he still does.”

“Milly! Of course he doesn’t! I mean, how could he? She had dip-dyed blue hair.”

They both looked at each other, biting their lips, before bursting out into laughter. Rose pulled Milly tighter. “She hurt him, to put it at its very lightest. He needs time to get over it — what the scum did. He did it to protect you. I promise. He’s not a bad person.”

Milly nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I know, Rose. That’s precisely the problem. I sort of wish he’d — I don’t know, dumped me via owl. His poor face! He had me feeling bad.”

“Ha! You’ll find someone else! Someone who will treat you like the queen you are!”

“We can’t all be privileged enough to be dating the Scorpion King,” Milly teased, poking Rose’s shoulder. “But thank you, Rose, genuinely. For being here with me tonight.”

“We’re best friends, Mills,” Rose replied. “And I know that you’d do the same with me.”

“Not that I’ll ever need to,” Milly replied, grinning. “Right, I’m going for a shower to freshen up. I’ll meet you at dinner?”

“Of course,” Rose replied, moving up from and out of the bed. “Love you, Mills.”

“Love you too.”

* * *

Scorpius had dashed up from his seat and over to Rose the moment that she had entered the Great Hall. He flung his arms around her, his grip on her tight. “Rose!” He said. “Is everything alright? I saw you earlier — I tried to call you over, but I don’t think that you heard me. People were saying that you hexed Anderson! And Thaminah was crying but she wouldn’t say anything to Albus or I! She seemed quite frosty too. You can tell me anything, I promise.”

Rose shook her head. “I can’t, Scorpius, but it’s fine. I’m alright. I just needed to be there for a friend.”

“And here’s me thinking that you were getting worked up over meeting Newt,” Scorpius said.

“Oh, I do,” Rose replied. “It’s getting rather unbearable.”   
  
“Is it?” Scorpius asked, moving his hands down to her waist. “Maybe I can make it slightly more bearable, tonight after we sign the prefect’s off from their duties?”

“Oh, thank sounds _perfect_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise, I was writing this before JKR announced 2 more Fantastic Beasts films! It was the weirdest coincidence. 
> 
> I know this is quite short, but I've added another chapter tonight (or will do very shortly!) to make up for it :)


	18. Losers and Perfection

Rose Granger-Weasley was not a loser. She didn’t like losing, had never lost on a momentous scale, and did everything that she could to avoid it. Rose did not lose.

But here she was, on her broom, hearing the announcement that Louisa Chambers had caught the snitch and delivered a victory for Hufflepuff over Gryffindor. It wasn’t just any defeat: it was a defeat in Rose’s very last Quidditch game for her beloved house and a disastrous one at that.

She held her head high as she congratulated the other team and received the silver trophy. Her captain, Phillip Goldstein, bit back tears as he hugged her.

“We did our best,” he said as if desperately wanting to convince himself. “We did our best.”

Scorpius came to comfort her afterwards, a sympathetic smile on his face. He pulled her into a hug, rubbing her back. He was wary; his girlfriend didn’t lose. “You did amazing, Rose!” He said. “I’m so proud of you. Hufflepuff just got lucky!”

“You know that’s a lie,” Rose replied. “But thank you.”

She showered slowly, thinking about the loss and how the title of ‘loser’ now applied to her. She didn’t want to go to the celebrations outside. The new tradition was a stupid, inter-house unity effort succeeding the war and Rose had no enthusiasm towards watching the Hufflepuffs celebrate and Anderson basking in her failure.

But she went anyway. She didn’t want to seem like a bitter, grumpy loser.

Rose had stayed close to Scorpius the entire night. His cheerfulness and humour was a comfort, as was the knowledge that she would never be a loser to him. Even if she had failed her N.E.W.Ts and ended up being forced to do a job that she hated forever, she would always be a winner in his eyes.

“I’m still the proudest of boyfriends,” Scorpius said, leaning his face into hers amongst the noise. “You may be _chasing_ on the Quidditch pitch, but you’ll never need to _chase_ me.” He paused. “Sorry, that’s an awful one.”

Rose let out a genuine laugh, shaking her head. “No, it’s wonderful,” she said. “Much better than that one which you told Newt.”

“He loved it!”

Jamie, Scorpius’s ex, approached them then. A sweet, geeky boy, he wanted to talk to Scorpius about what it was like spending time alone with Newt. Rose smiled and said that she wanted another drink.

She spotted Albus leaning against a tree by himself; Rose didn’t believe it was him at first. He had never enjoyed these sort of events, nor had he ever went to any.

“Albus?” Rose said as she approached him. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“Well, it is my last one,” he replied. “We’re all leaving soon. Might as well make the most of Hogwarts, like dad always said to do.”

“A bit late for that,” Rose replied.

“Coping well with the loss?” Albus retorted. “I’m not going to lie: it was slightly satisfying watching people who had bullied me for years losing disastrously. You did well, though.”

“Thanks, Albus. Empathetic as ever.”

“It’s alright to lose, Rose,” Albus said softly. “Scorpius and I were losers for years and I think it’s a label that we still both like to wear proudly. Plus, Quidditch is a fucking awful sport.”

“That’s an awful opinion, Albus,” Rose replied, smiling fondly at him. “Truly awful. But I’m alright, I think. I’ll get over it. I just wanted my last match to go a little differently.”

“You wanted it to go perfectly, Rose. I know you.”

“The stubborn part of me wants to argue with you. But the training for five days straight, tired loser is going to admit that maybe — just _maybe_ — you’re right.”

Albus looked away from her and up at the castle that basked in the twilight in-front of them. “I was thinking, earlier, when everyone else was out here about how we’re leaving very, very soon and how I’m sometimes angry that Hogwarts wasn't a perfect experience for me. It was far from it.”

“It wasn’t for me either.”

“And it wasn’t for our parents, either. I mean, I did get horrifically manipulated by the overage and murderous spawn of Voldemort. But dad had it pretty hard here, too. My dad and your dad didn’t even get to finish it and they’re alright. They still treat Hogwarts like it was completely wonderful.”

“Oh, it is,” Rose replied. “It doesn’t need to be perfect to be wonderful.” Rose paused. “Rather like me.”

“See! There’s the Rosie-Posie of our youth!”

Rose playfully slapped his shoulder as he laughed at her. “You’re far from a loser,” Albus said. “Now go and enjoy one of our final nights here.”

“Only if you come with me,” Rose said, grabbing ahold of his hand and dragging him away from the tree. “I was also thinking earlier — about how badly, for years, I wished that I hadn’t left you and Scorpius that day on the train. I didn’t like not being your friend. The past seven years definitely haven’t went how I expected or wanted but I’m glad that they went the way that they did.”

“Rose! Albus! There you two are,” Scorpius said from behind them. “I know you wouldn’t be able to resist in the end, mate.”  
  
“I needed your Quidditch puns, obviously,” Albus replied as he pulled Scorpius into a hug. “I heard that we have another loser to join our gang.”

“Albus!” Scorpius hissed. He pulled Rose against his chest. “He’s just joking!”

“I am a loser. Today, anyway,” Rose replied, smiling at Scorpius. “But that’s alright. I’m alright with that. But I do think that I’ll need some pumpkin juice to get me through tonight without hexing Anderson.”

“Pumpkin juice?” Scorpius repeated.

“Oh yes,” Rose said, taking his hand and leading him away with Albus by their side. “So I can throw it at him instead, of course.”


	19. Mother and Daughter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Rose and Hermione hug mentioned is something that isn't in the script but is on stage. It's beautiful and heartbreaking, and occurs right after the scene with Scorpius, Albus, Harry, Ginny, Draco and (later) Hermione in McGonagall's office after Scorpius returns. On stage, Rose overhears everything and is visibly upset and thwarted by what she hears - as is Hermione.

Rose would miss Hogwarts. She would miss the feasts and the extravagant food, the feeling of stuffing herself full as joyful conversation was spoken around her. She would miss the Gryffindor common room, the crackling of the fire, and the warmth that came both from it and from being around friends. She would miss her house, the house unity and the feeling of belonging to something fun and distinct. Despite the stress of deadlines and exams, she would miss _learning_ — learning to be the best, most careful witch that she could be. As she sat at the Gryffindor table for the last time at her graduation feast, she felt like she was that witch. An ambitious, careful, diligent witch.

That wasn’t to say, however, that there were things that Rose wouldn’t miss about Hogwarts. She was now eighteen and missed having her own room and space. She was excited at the upcoming freedom to go anywhere whenever she wanted, no longer restricted by planned Hogsmede visits. There was also, of course, the newfound possibility of being able to spend more private time with Scorpius when her parents were working different hours from her.

Rose had chosen to move back home. It was partly due to circumstance: Thaminah was moving to America to begin work with MACUSA and Milly’s muggle mother was very sick with cancer, prompting Milly to make the decision to remain at home while she trained to be a healer. Albus and Scorpius had also made the same decision. Scorpius was uncertain and, ultimately, unwilling to leave Draco alone and, as with Albus, enjoyed his repaired relationship with his father. Albus wanted to live with no one other than Scorpius (James was sharing a flat with three other, rowdy wizards and Albus had declared that he would rather live with a Hippogriff than with them) and so decided to stay with his parents. Ultimately, however, Rose _enjoyed_ being at home: she at least wanted a few more years of her father’s cooking and jokes and her mother’s advice before she left for good.

“I can’t believe it,” Ron said to her, as they exited the Great Hall after the feast. “My Rosie, leaving Hogwarts! And with a job offer with Wizengamot! Have I mentioned how proud we are of you?”

“Daily, Dad,” Rose replied. “I can’t quite believe that I’m leaving either.”

“You’ll adjust,” Hermione said, pulling Rose against her as they walked. “There is a life after Hogwarts.”

“And a fine one at that!” Ron added, smiling at Hermione.

“Rose!” Scorpius called from behind them. The family stopped and turned around, Ron’s face falling as Scorpius and Draco walked towards them, the Potters by their side. “That was the best feast yet! Mr Weasley, Ms Granger! You are both looking brilliant!”

“Hermione and Ron, Scorpius,” Hermione corrected him with a smile. She looked at Draco and then to Harry and Ginny. “Although I hate to use cliches, it does feel just like yesterday that we were saying goodbye to them for the first time.”

“Did you do something to your hair, Draco? It looks different,” Ron intruded.

“Dad!” Rose hissed.

“I haven’t, Weasley,” Draco replied briskly. “But I do agree, Hermione. It does seem so recent.” He looked at his son and smiled proudly at him. “Has Scorpius told you both that he’ll be working for the best wizard-historical research organisation in the country come September?”

“Dad!” Scorpius whined. He turned around to Albus and desperately shook his head.

“Rosie told us,” Ron replied. “I’ve always known that you would be capable for a job like that after Godric’s Hollow. Well done, Scorpius!” Ron raised his hand for a moment, hesitating slightly, before placing it on Scorpius’s shoulder. A look of glowing pride and joy appeared on Scorpius’s face before he flung his arms around a very-red Ron.

“Thank you, Mr Weasley!” Scorpius said as he pulled back.”That means a lot, coming from you!”

Rose caught Albus’s eye and grinned.

“We should take some pictures,” Ginny said. “A group photo, one of the cousins, one of the best friends, and one of the couple.”

Rose, Scorpius, and Albus obliged and smiled for the rounds of flashes aimed at them. Rose and Scorpius’s personal photo was taken last. Albus moved away from Rose and Scorpius stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close to him.

“I’m feeling very optimistic about life after Hogwarts,” Scorpius said to her.

“I think I am too,” she replied before she leaned in to kiss him. The camera flashed at them and they looked up, slightly embarrassed but also too fond of each other to care. Ron, though supportive of their relationship and keen on Scorpius, had moved his eyes firmly away. Draco had paused his conversation with Harry to watch them, a slight smile on his face.

“Lovely!” Hermione exclaimed as Rose and Scorpius walked back towards the group. “One to treasure.”

Draco cleared his throat, an uncertainty in his voice. “I rather foolishly forgot a camera — would it be alright if you took one of Scorpius and I, Hermione? I would like one to commemorate today.”

“Of course, Draco,” Hermione said. She turned to a confused Ron and handed him the camera. “Ron, take one of Scorpius and Draco for me. I’m wanting to go on a walk with Rose.”

* * *

“You’ll get used to the Ministry, Rose,” Hermione said as they walked by the lake. “It’s a bit overwhelming at first.”

Rose nodded, images of her potential life at the ministry forming in her head. “I think I met the conditions with my N.E.W.T. exams. They went quite well, I’d say.”

“I have every bit of faith in you,” Hermione replied. “You’ve worked so hard and came through so much.”

“Coming from you.”

“Well, it was different, with the war,” Hermione said. Her face began to strain as tears formed in her eyes. “Do you remember, back in your fourth year, after Scorpius came back? When we both realised what happened.”

“We hugged like we’ve never hugged before,” Rose replied. She could feel herself getting gradually upset as the memory came back to her, a large lump forming in her throat. “As awful as this sounds, I don’t think I’d be the person I am today if all of that hadn’t happened. My existence… the possibility of it… it really was rather fragile, wasn’t it?”

Hermione nodded as she pulled her daughter close to her. “I find myself forgetting too. It’s quite easy to, when you’re Minister of Magic. I’m very aware that some people still oppose, silently, of course, to me holding that office but I still forget. It all still seems so secure, even after I — I lost you and Hugo.”

“You didn’t lose us, Mum,” Rose said, hugging her tightly. “We just — didn’t exist for a while.”

Hermione nodded weakly as tears fell down her face. She composed herself and placed both of her hands on the sides of her Rose’s face. “But you and Hugo are here: children of a Muggleborn and Bloodtraitor, achieving and flourishing. The way it should be.”

“And the way that it always will be! Those bigots don’t stand a chance with me in the Wizengamot. I’ll be putting pureblood supremacists on trial like it’s second nature! I’m going to be doing some good!”

Hermione began to cry again; these tears, however, weren’t stemmed from pain but from an overwhelming pride. “I know that you absolutely will. I’m glad that you’re coming back home to stay with us. I don’t think that I’ve ever gotten past missing you or Hugo.”

“I’m glad too. It’ll be nice — to travel to work together and back.” Rose smiled at the thought. “But, uhm, Mum, please don’t nag me about doing my washing like you do during the summer. I’m 18!”

“My house, my rules, Rose.” Hermione said, laughing. “But I’ll relax about it, since you’ll be working so hard during the day.”

  They continued to walk again, stopping when they reached the place at the lake with the best view of Hogwarts. Rose tried to memorise the sight and how she felt, staring up at the great castle with all of its history, magic, victories, and tragedies.

“When I first came here, I didn’t have any idea of my place in this world,” Hermione said. “I know that you did.”

Rose nodded. “I did but I often lost it.”

“Your place in this world will always change, Rose. It will again soon, over the next few years. Your career will give you more power in this world.”

“I know,” Rose replied. “It’s a challenge but it’s one that I like.”

An uneasy feeling began to form in Rose’s stomach. She had felt it frequently recently, whenever she thought about the likely possibility of starting at the Wizengamot in September. Rose was confident but she had realised, over time, that confidence didn’t completely banish insecurity.

“What is it, love?”

“Just nerves. I want to do well. I need to do well. I want and need to change our world for the better. I mean, no offence Mum, you do your best, but problems still exist and I want to solve them. I don’t know what I’ll do if I don’t.”

“You’ll realise, Rose, that if we all try our best and work hard — we’ll achieve great things. We always need to work together.”  
  
 “I can’t wait to work alongside you, Mum.”

Hermione smiled as her eyes watered again. “Neither can I, Rose.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've loved writing about Rose's relationships with people other than Scorpius in the past few chapters (there's still a few more moments like those to come, such as a Ron and Rose one!), but I'm excited to write mainly about Scorose from now on. Their relationship is definitely going to take an 'adult' turn now that they've left Hogwarts, so there's lots of cute moments to come! :)


	20. Graduate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Scorpius's 'pose' mentioned is actually something that Anthony Boyle has been doing recently in Act 4, Scene 14! I've heard a few accounts of it and it seems hilarious!! So I had to write about it, of course!

_“Congratulations on your N.E.W.T. results and getting your job. Are you excited?” Sean had asked her during the fortnightly appointment the week after her results had came in._

_Rose nodded. She could feel the long-lasting, unmoving euphoria crawl onto her face and, for not the first time that last week, she wondered if she would ever be able to move past her glowing pride._

_“Completely,” Rose replied. “I’m not even nervous. I know, I know — I need to challenge the whole ‘living up to the legacy’ mindset if it comes up. But I’m excited, I genuinely am. I have work that I need to do and I’m going to do it excellently.”_

Three weeks later and Rose was flicking her wand around in her new office, unpacking items and putting them into her desk and onto her shelves. She carefully organised her wizarding law books (that she had already read and annotated, several times, of course) and lovingly put up the cards of congratulations, good lucks, and well wishes.

Rose was unable to ignore the nagging unease that was swirling around in her belly. It had started last night after her celebratory dinner at the Burrow. She couldn’t nail down why she felt this way. Was it nerves? The pressure? The expectation? She hadn’t felt this way before last night.

Clearing her throat, Rose inhaled and began to unpack the final box: her photographs.

The first one that she lifted out was of her and a baby Hugo. They were giggling away in the bath as they blew bubbles at each other. Smiling at it, Rose placed it onto her desk.

_“You’ve done alright, sis,” he had told her last night. “Bit of pressure on me, but I’m proud of you.”_

Next lay one of her and Albus at their graduation feast. Rose was jokingly lifting up his Slytherin tie and pointing at it, a look of dramatic mock horror plastered across her face. If she had done that six years ago, she had reminisced at the time, it would have had a very different outcome.

_“There’s no need to worry, Rose,” Albus had said before he left with his family. “You’ve been preparing yourself for tomorrow since your conception.”_

Rose sorted through several other framed pictures: one of her, Thaminah and Milly at their last day of Hogwarts; Rose with Dominique at Christmas last year; and two with her maternal and paternal grandparents.

Nestled in lilac tissue was an ornament gold frame which possessed the photo of Rose and Scorpius at their graduation feast. They were looking at each other, smiling, before they kissed. The photo made Rose’s stomach swell and fill with a joyful warmth.

 _“Luckily for you, I wracked my brain for a pun on ‘Wizengamot’ and was unable to find anything. But I don’t need a pun to tell you how proud I am of you, and how well you’re going to do,” he had told her last night. They had managed to briefly escape to the shed outside, sitting side-by-side against it as her head rested on his shoulder. “You don’t understand the faith that I have in you — but if you ever — ever need me, to support you, if it ever gets stressful… I’m here for you. I’ll be_ Wiz-en-there-ga-mot. _Merlin, that was awful. I will_ al-wiz _love you! Much better.”_

Rose laughed at the memory, a grin on her face as she lovingly placed the photograph onto the desk. She lifted the last photo out of the box — one of her and her parents when she was one years old. She was toddling across to the camera, Ron and Hermione holding onto her from behind. The look of shining, limitless love on her parents’s face made her feel incredibly, incredibly lucky.

Her parents didn’t need to give a speech or be vocal about how proud they were of her. She knew, last night, when they hugged her before she went to bed. The three of them laughed at their group hug as her mother placed a kiss on her forehead and her father rubbed her back. She felt safe, she felt loved.

Rose placed the last photo down and looked at them all. She thought about the injustices that everyone in them had faced during their lives: Hugo being targeted by Rita Skeeter for his “mediocre” O.W.L. results; Albus receiving no help from the Ministry following his ordeal with Delphi; Scorpius being targeted by the press since he could talk; and her mother and father who, perhaps, had faced the greatest injustices of them all in their youth.

Rose thought of them as she straightened up her posture and sat down at her desk.

She felt safe. She felt loved. She felt ready.

* * *

 

**3 months later**

“I love my job, Scorpius, I really do,” Rose sighed. “But the _stress_ sometimes! And it’s like the Ministry don’t care. They give no support what-so-ever. They’re _so_ backwards!”

Rose was sitting on the edge of Scorpius’s bed at Malfoy Manor, topless (“Oh, my clothes are itching me! They are stressing me out. This jumper is just _so_ itchy!”), as Scorpius sat behind her and meticulously massaged her shoulders.

“You have time off for the holidays soon, at least,” Scorpius replied. His voice sounded distracted as he channelled everything into trying to relax her. Rose smiled at the realisation and turned around. His grey eyes flickered up at her, his eyebrow creasing in the worry that he had done something wrong. “Did I….”

Rose stopped him by placing her lips onto his. She teasingly moved against his lower lip before giving in to him.

“Mmm…I love you,” she hummed once she had pulled away, skimming her nose against his. “And your massages. Definitely the ultimate stress-reliever.”

Scorpius laughed and said, “my services are always at you request”. He smiled playfully at her before moving his head in order to give her back long, lingering kisses. “I was thinking, earlier, about when we were in fourth year. After the ol’ time travelling shenanigans”.

“And what were you thinking about? All of those long, long hours in detention for your sins?”

“Not quite,” Scorpius replied. “Do you remember — just after Albus and I came back, when we were on the stairs and you came along? And I did that pose? And you fell in love with me on the spot, right then and there?”

Rose responded by staring at him with a blank expression plastered across her face.

Scorpius moved across the bed and rested one hand on his head. Once he was comfortable, he then leaned back and laid out his legs in an awkward-seductive pose. “This one!”

Rose began to laugh hysterically, her head thrown back as Scorpius frowned.

“Hey!” He said, nudging her. “You loved it at the time — don’t deny it!”

“Scorpius, you tripped on your cloak, fell down the stairs, and then tried to pretend that this — this _pose_ had been planned all along!”

“Liar!” Scorpius said, although he too was laughing. He suddenly lunged at her, throwing both of his arms around her. Scorpius rolled Rose around so that she was lying underneath him, a brightness now shining from her face. He moved a stray coil from her face as he stared at her, his love for her present in his eyes. “I love you, Rose.”

Rose kissed him again, this time with an increased fierceness. Scorpius responded, moving his hands to her breasts and gently caressing them.   
They made love slowly. Scorpius took his time thrusting in and out of her, basking in the feeling of being inside of someone he loved so dearly. Rose moved her hands up and down his back as he did so, the touch of his bare skin being just as relaxing as the massage earlier. They came together and he didn’t rush to remove himself from her.

“I’ve found the perfect de-stress combination,” Rose said quietly, stroking Scorpius’s hair as he lay on-top of her. “Massages, sex, and any mention of that pose.”

* * *

**1 year later**

“It can be quite sad, though,” Milly said over a glass of wine at an Italian restaurant in Muggle London. “Training to be a Healer. It’s difficult, when a patient dies… I just keep remembering my mum when she, you know, passed away.”

Rose could see the tears forming in Milly’s eyes at the memory. She leaned over and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “I’m so proud of you, Mills,” Rose said. “I’m sure you’re doing amazingly. It’s not easy being a Healer — at all.”

“I enjoy it, though,” Milly said. “It’s fast-paced, you know? You’re never sitting around looking for something to do! Which can be bad too, of course.”

“Oh, I completely sympathise,” Rose replied with a laugh. “I sometimes feel like I’m back at Hogwarts with the amount of research and reading that I have to do!”

“But you enjoy it, don’t you?”

“Of course. I wouldn’t be doing it if I didn’t.”

The two girls were sipping at their drinks when Milly’s phone vibrated. She looked down as a sheepish grin appeared on her face. When she looked up again, Rose was staring at her with raised eyebrows.

“Anyone important?” Rose teased.

“Maybe.”

“Maybe! Spill, Mills!”

“Maybe a boy.”

“A boy!”

“Maybe an American Wizard. Who’s also training to be a Healer. And, get this — he was a _Thunderbird_ at Ilvermorny!”

“Oh Merlin, he’s adventurous!” Rose said loudly as Milly laughed, her cheeks now reddened. “But seriously, Mills, I’m so happy for you!”

“It’s just the beginning of things,” Milly said quickly. “But I like him. A lot. And he makes me happy, you know? I’ve needed that after my mum. And after Albus too, I guess. ”

Rose nodded. “Of course. That’s sometimes all we need in a partner, really.”

* * *

**1 year later**

“And the legal reform draft, it will be published in time?” Hermione asked.

“Absolutely,” Louisa Bones replied. “We have one of our finest graduate interns working on it. It’s outstandingly researched. You should be very proud of your… uhm, very proud of your graduate interns, Minister.”

Hermione understood who the unnamed intern was by Louisa hesitation. She looked down at her desk in a weak attempt to hide the smile on her face. “Thank you, Louisa,” Hermione finally said, lifting her head once she had composed herself. “I’ll see you tomorrow at the meeting.”

Louisa nodded, smiling knowingly at Hermione, as she got up from her seat and exited Hermione’s office.

Hermione was looking over at her clock, noticing that it was lunch time, when she heard a knock at the door.

“Come in,” Hermione said, flicking her wand and opening the door.

The sight of her daughter, dressed in a smart suit, made Hermione’s face light up.

“Rose. Is everything alright?” She said, rising from her seat and walking over to Rose.

“I think dad put our sandwiches in the same bag,” Rose said, grinning widely. “I only have pumpkin juice and an apple in mine.”

Hermione flicked her wand again and moved a large, plastic carrier bag from across the room towards them. She reached inside of it and examined a sandwich that she had pulled out. “He did indeed,” Hermione said, handing her daughter the sandwich. “Louisa Bones came to visit me.”

“Oh. She’s overseeing my legal reform drafts,” Rose replied with a forced casualness. Her mother was, alongside the public, the only one at the ministry who she truly and deeply cared about pleasing. Rose knew, of course, that her mother would never not be proud of her — but her feedback mattered. Dearly.

“I read over it just before you arrived,” Hermione said. She took another step forward and offered Rose her hand. Surprised and confused, Rose shook it. “As your boss, I’m very satisfied. Well done, Miss Granger-Weasley.” Before Rose had the chance to reply, Hermione gripped her hand tightly and pulled Rose into a fierce hug. “And as your mum, I’m absolutely beaming with pride.”  
  


* * *

**1 year later**

  
Scorpius had worried that she would come to him crying. The sight didn’t surprise him.

The sight of Rose standing at his door in the crispy winter darkness, hunched over and letting out little howls of pain. He quickly pulled her close to him, holding her up as he moved them inside. “It’s alright, Rose. It’s finished now.”

“Scorpius? Is that you?” His father called from the kitchen, a creeping distress in his voice at the sound. Scorpius could hear his footsteps and he quickly increased their pace to his bedroom.

“I’m fine, dad! Just with Rose. I’ll talk to you later tonight,” Scorpius shouted back.

When they reached his room, Scorpius pulled them towards his bed. Rose collapsed down onto it, burying her head into his chest.

“It was awful, Scorpius! Awful!” Rose sobbed, gasping for breath. “I’m so fucking angry! What a rodent!”

Rose had been working on a highly-publicised trial at the Wizengamot for the last couple of months. Scorpius could tell that it was taking its toll on her — Albus had, too. The two boys had went for butterbeer last week and Albus had mentioned Rose’s recent subdued behaviour. Scorpius had tried — tried _so_ hard — to get through to her. To be there for her. He had tried everything. But, whenever he (or anyone else, from what Scorpius had gathered from Albus) had mentioned it, Rose had been firm. _“This is my job,” Rose had replied. “I can’t get emotional.”_

What Rose was failing to understand was that the whole of the Wizarding Community was emotional at this trial. A father had tortured and murdered his son and their muggle wife for marrying in secret; the war and its ideology was still a very recent and strong memory for many of the magical population. The accounts of the torture and murder were harrowing to read in The Prophet, never mind listening to first-hand accounts of the states of the bodies once they had been found.

“I know, Rose,” Scorpius said. He kissed the top of her forehead and held her closer.

“And I’m sitting here crying! Crying! I shouldn’t be crying!”

“Rose, no,” Scorpius said firmly. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with crying right now.”

Rose wailed loudly, unable to respond. Scorpius adjusted them so that they were propped up against his pillows, their bodies lying against each other as he trailed his fingers up and down her arm. They lay like that for an hour until Rose cried so much that she fell asleep. When she woke up, they were still in the same position as Scorpius’s chin rested against the top of her head.

“How are you feeling?” He asked her.

“Better, I think. I’m sorry — I had a moment. The trial was awful. I don’t think I’ve ever been that angry in my life. But I’m going to use that anger well. I’m going to make sure that things like that don’t happen. That we don’t let them happen and, if they do, I’m going to make sure that people like him feel the full force of the law.”

Scorpius stared down at the determined, inspired look on his girlfriend’s face. Her lips were pierced together as she gazed at the wall, her mind running with ideas about reform and law. There was something about that look, Scorpius couldn’t quite pin-down exactly what, which made Scorpius feel like a heavy weight of emotion had been slammed into his chest.

He didn’t have time to ponder it; Rose had already moved her head to look up at him, a determined and motivated smirk now now etched across her face. Scorpius kissed it and felt the emotion hit him again.

That night, once Rose had left and Scorpius lay alone in bed, he wondered where his father had kept his mother’s engagement ring. Scorpius had decided that he would be needing it very soon.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many, many apologies for the delayed update! I've been super bogged down with Uni work. I'll hopefully have another chapter out this weekend to make up for it :)


	21. Twelve Lemon Tarts

For not the first time in the last two months, Draco Malfoy found himself anxiously studying his son.

They were eating Sunday dinner at their magnificent oak dining table in Malfoy Manor. Scorpius was hunched over, carefully cutting up his steak, and frowning as he did so. His son’s rigid posture wasn’t a rarity: it had been persistent at nearly every single meal for two months now. In fact, it went beyond meal times; it had become an ever-present feature of Scorpius’s behaviour and Draco, at this stage, had reached the end of his patience. He was worried for his son and, as he watched Scorpius deliberately cut his steak into ridiculously perfect squares, concluded that something had to be done.

Clearing his throat, Draco put down his knife and fork and folded his arms. “Scorpius.”

Scorpius looked up, slightly shaken by the sound of his father’s voice dragging him out of his deep thoughts. “Yes, Dad?”

“I don’t believe you, when you say that everything is fine. Everything is clearly not fine, Scorpius. Talk to me. I’m your father.”

“Dad…”

“Is it your job, Scorpius? Are you no longer enjoying it? You know that we have enough money to sustain you if you wish to find a new one.”

“Oh no, Dad!” Scorpius said, shocked. “Merlin! I could _never_ hate my job! I’m _paid_ to research _history_!”

“Well, is it… is it Rose? I’ve not seen her around the house lately,” Draco said. Scorpius’s face flickered nervously and Draco tensed. “Scorpius, whatever happened between you and Rose… she’s just one girl. There are — there are other people. What about that Ravenclaw boy with the glasses that you introduced me to? I know that it was in your fifth year but he might — he might want to talk again. Or… or you could — what do they say, now-a-days? Get out there?”

“Oh, Dad, no!” Scorpius winced. “Rose and I — we’re fine. More than fine, actually. I’ve been, uhm, meaning to ask you something recently.” Scorpius hunched over again and nervously bit his fingers with one hand while the other smoothed down the sides of his hair.

“You can ask me anything, Scorpius. You know that.”

“Where is mum’s engagement ring?” Scorpius said quickly.

“Your mother’s engagement ring?”

“Yes. I — I know that she left it, for me. I was wondering if we could go and get it.”

“Scorpius, has this been about your mother? I know that we both miss her dearly and that it will never go away. But if it’s been — if it’s been making you upset recently, we can visit her grave together or discuss it. She wouldn’t like to see you like this.”

“What? Dad, no. I — I miss Mum, of course! But I’m fine. Where is the ring?”

“Gringotts, Scorpius. But I don’t see why you would need to —”

“I want to propose to Rose!” Scorpius said so quickly that the words slurred. He seemed lighter, more relaxed, once they had been uttered. A small smile had now appeared on his face. “I never realised that ‘propose’ and ‘Rose’ rhymed before.”

Draco stared at his son, his posture frozen.

“I’m — I — Rose and I…” Scorpius sighed. “I love Rose, Dad. I’m completely and utterly serious about wanting to do this. I want to spend the rest of my life with her and I — I think that she wants that too. We’re not much younger than you and mum were and her mum and dad got married even younger!”

“There had been a war, Scorpius.”

“I know but does it really matter? I mean, Dad, the wizarding population is so small. Ninety-nine percent of us meet our future spouses at Hogwarts! We’re rats in a box and, well, I’ve found my rat,” Scorpius grimaced. “I didn’t mean it like that! Rose is — Rose makes me happy. I know — I can feel it, it’s just something within me, that this is the right choice. I want this.”

Draco sighed and stood up. Scorpius followed his lead, a fiery determination now forming inside of him.

“Dad…” Scorpius began firmly.

He was stopped by Draco’s touch as he was pulled into a strong hug. Draco’s hand stroked the back of his son’s hair tenderly, as if he were memorising how the texture felt on his skin.

“I’ve been very worried about you, Scorpius,” he said. “You think I’m going to try and persuade you to not do this but you’re wrong. While I am slightly surprised that we’re having this conversation so early, I trust you.”

“Thank you, Dad.” 

“We’ll go and collect it tomorrow evening after you finish work,” Draco said. “Now go and enjoying your dinner without studying your steak.”

* * *

**3 weeks later**

In Albus’s sixth year, he went to his father for advice.

_“Scorpius and Rose,” Albus had desperately said to an amused Harry. “Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron. How did you do it? How do I do it?”_

His best friend and his cousin dating had, luckily, never caused any problems for Albus until now. Sure, the occasional hints that they were doing  _stuff_ made Albus grimace. But they were all able to exist together peacefully — Albus, his best friend, and his cousin.

And now, as Scorpius and Albus sat in silence in his living room, sipping cups of tea, he desperately wished that he could go back to those moments.

Albus had been sent here by Dominique. He had noticed a slightly more anxious Scorpius and, whenever he had asked, Scorpius had brushed it off as ‘difficult research’. He didn’t think that it was related to Rose until Dominique had tensely approached him, demanding that he speak to Scorpius about his distant behaviour towards their cousin. It then made sense — Scorpius being anxious, Rose being tense and distant, and the pair not going out together as much.

Albus had been firm with himself, prior to Scorpius coming over today.

_One. Tell him you won’t take sides unless someone gets hurt._   
_Two. If someone does get hurt, tell him that you’ll be vocal but fair about it._   
_Three. Tell him that he needs to hurry up and do it._

As they silently sipped on their teas, Scorpius’s mind clearly so deeply elsewhere, number three seemed very far off.

Albus cleared his throat at last and placed his tea down onto the coffee table. Scorpius acknowledged it and gave his friend an awkward smile. “So,” Albus began. “The research — how is it going?”

“Oh, I’m not doing research right now. I’ve been editing my report for the last three months.”

“You told me last week that you were down because of ‘research gone as wrong as our fourth year’.”

Scorpius shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Oh. I…”

“Scorpius, listen,” Albus snapped. Scorpius’s face fell at his tone. His best friend’s pain was visible in a way that made Albus’s chest sink and his stomach swell with guilt. “I’m sorry — I didn’t mean to…”

“No, no, it’s fine. You’re right. I lied.”

Albus sighed. “Scorpius, whatever is going on between you and Rose… I’m not going to be angry with you. You need to do what is best for you. But you can’t — you can’t keep doing this to her. Cancelling dates, being distant. She’s not said anything to me, Dominique did — but she’s wound up over it all. You need to just do it.”

Scorpius had gone very, very pale. Albus felt the guilt swirl around in his stomach again. He stood up and approached his friend, yearning to comfort him. Scorpius stood up when Albus neared and backed away like a frightened animal.

“Scorpius…”

“Do what, Albus?” Scorpius said, horrified.

“Well, break up with her…”

“Break up with her?!” Scorpius exclaimed. His breathing had gone heavy now. “What is… What… Albus, what did Dominique say?”

“Scorpius, calm down!”

“What did Dominique say, Albus?!”

“Rose thinks that you’re wanting to break up with her,” Albus said quickly, under the belief that it was the best approach. He realised that he had been wrong when Scorpius gasped and ran to the door.

Albus flicked his wand to lock it and rushed over, grabbing Scorpius from behind to wrestle him away.

“Albus, let me go! I need to go and speak to Rose.”

“Not like this!”

“I don’t want to break up with her, Albus!”

“I think that’s clear, Scorpius,” Albus said, struggling to keep his grip on him. “But you — you really shouldn’t be cancelling on so many dates and being so distant with her. You’re my best friend, Scorpius, and she’s my cousin and I love you both. But you can’t — I don’t know why you’re doing this…”

“I don’t want to break up with her! Merlin, I want to ask her to marry me!”

Albus’s grip on Scorpius dropped. The boys stared at each other, panting heavily, confusion dripping over both of their faces.

“I — I’ve only been…” Scorpius swallowed and smoothed the sides of his hair down. “I wanted to do it right. I’ve been trying to ask her for the past three weeks. I… I wanted it to be perfect but, every time I’ve planned something, it’s either rained or been far _too_ hot that we would be uncomfortable or Hyde Park has been _far_ too busy…”

Albus stared at his friend in disbelief for several moments. He finally shook his head, relaxing, and grinned. “She’s going to kill you, mate,” he said. “Absolutely slaughter you. She’s been furious.”

Eyes bulging, Scorpius reached for the door again. Albus leapt forward and threw himself in-front of it. “I need to go and speak to her, Albus!”

“Well, you can’t ask her like this, can you? Not very perfect.”

“This is serious!”

Albus laughed, unable to hide his amusement at the situation. He grabbed Scorpius and pulled him into a tight hug. “She’s off work tomorrow. You can do it then.”

Scorpius nodded against Albus. They pulled away, smiling at each other. “I think I will. If she hasn’t hexed me in my sleep before then.”  
  
“If you’d left it another couple of days, she probably would have,” Albus said. Scorpius winced in regret and Albus placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “But she’ll understand, tomorrow, when you ask her. Marriage, huh? Can I see the ring?”

“It’s at my house,” Scorpius said. “It’s my mother’s. I’ve been guarding it with my life. I know that this is the right decision, for us. I can just feel it, you know, Albus? I know that twenty-one is young but… it just feels right for us.”

“I think — I think from looking at you two, Rose feels the same.”

Scorpius smiled. “I’ve also, uhm, been meaning to ask. Or I was going to ask you. You’ll be my best man if she says yes, won’t you?”

“I think you’re supposed to ask her first before you ask me, Scorpius,” Albus said, grinning. “But I’d be honoured to. Now go home and ask her round tomorrow. I don’t want _my_ best friend to be sent to St Mungo’s because _my_ cousin destroyed _his_ balls.”

* * *

**The following day**

It was a testament to how much Rose loved Scorpius that he still remained in one piece.

Repeatedly cancelling dates, withdrawing himself away from her, not being responsive whenever she desperately asked him what was wrong… Rose had been worried at first. Worried for Scorpius because it was so unlike him. Then came the anger, and then the sadness, and then the anger again. It went back and forth — anger and sadness, anger and sadness. She felt like he was shutting her out and two, competing parts of her wanted to handle it in very different ways.

Rose almost felt weak when she had eagerly accepted his offer to come around tomorrow. There was a desperation in his voice, a sadness, when he promised her that he would not cancel; that the last two months had just been difficult at work. She wanted to yell at him, to snap back (and she had, whenever he had cancelled on her recently), but she couldn’t. Rose knew what Scorpius’s heart was like and it was a pure one.

“I got your favourite tart,” Scorpius said as they sat outside his house. It was slightly drizzling down, typical of the July British weather, forcing Scorpius to enchant several umbrellas to keep them dry. “The lemon one, from Sugarplum's Sweets Shop.”

“Ooooh, please!” Rose said, eagerly taking it. “Thank you. I need this after the past week at work. Funnily enough, I went into Sugarplum’s last week with Mum and the owner mentioned you.”

“S-She did?”

“She said that you’d been in at least ten times in the past two months, ordering lemon tarts.”

Scorpius laughed nervously. “Just a craving, that’s all.”

“I’ve been worried about you, you know,” Rose said. She leaned over and linked their hands together. “I love you so much, Scorpius, and I know how much you love me. But we — we need to talk about this — whatever is going on with you.”

“D-d-do we?”

Rose stared at him, his behaviour so foreign that it shocked her. “Yes, Scorpius, we do,” she said, her voice breaking. “Please.”

“Rose… I…” A sudden gust of wind stopped Scorpius as it sent their napkins flying across the lawn. “Oh bother.” He fumbled for his wand, turning away from Rose as he tried to get them back.

Rose had been reaching for her own wand when she noticed the little, black box that had now been exposed. It had been placed beside Scorpius and the tart, a blue dishcloth lying on-top of it; the wind had moved it, exposing it, and it was clear what it was.

Rose felt like a jolt of electricity had been rammed through her. Her whole body tingled with joy as her mouth dropped open. Scorpius had now turned around, the napkins safely recovered, and his mouth was moving. Rose could not hear what he was saying.

He looked at her so lovingly, so happily, that Rose felt another jolt rush through her.

“Yes!” She said. “Yes!”

“Wow, you’re enthusiastic for a cucumber finger sandwich,” Scorpius replied, laughing.

“What?”

“The cucumber sandwiches. I asked you if you wanted one…”

“No, no… well, yes, yes!" Rose exclaimed, flustered. She reached over and grabbed the black box as Scorpius watched her, his face melting in horror. “I will. Yes, one hundred times, yes! I will, I will, I will!”

Scorpius palmed his face with his hands and let out a dramatic groan. “Two months! Two months I have planned this for! Eleven lemon tarts I had to order and then eat myself! This one is the twelfth! And look!” He motioned up at the sky. “It’s not even a sunny day!”

Rose lunged at Scorpius, tackling him onto the blanket as she flung her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. “Yes, yes, yes,” she gasped between kisses.

“Can I at least ask you the question?”

Laughing, Rose nodded and handed him the box. Gazing up at her, he opened it to reveal a pear-shaped diamond ring. The band was glistened in white diamonds while the main rock was a brilliant emerald green. “Rose Granger-Weasley,” Scorpius began. “Would you like to confirm, again, that you will marry me?”

“I would be delighted to,” Rose said. They kissed again, more tenderly this time, as the reality began to sink in. “How could I say no, after twelve lemon tarts?”


	22. Malfoys

Rose had never liked weddings much growing up. She suspected, and hoped, that they were usually much more fun for the bride and groom than it were for the guests. She’d been to plenty, yearly even, during her teenage years at Hogwarts as her cousins began to marry.

_“I’m never getting married, Dom,” Rose had said at Lucy’s wedding. “Well, no, I don’t mind_ marriage. _I just hate this farce!”_

A farce it was, indeed, but when you’re a bride or a groom, it quickly becomes an enjoyable farce.

“Have you tried this coconut one?” Rose said to Scorpius as she put another forkful of cake into her mouth. “It’s delicious.”

“I still think we should go for the lemon one,” Scorpius replied. “But whatever cake we choose, I want to put it down as a pun on the menu. Just give me time to create one — it is my wedding, after all!”

Rose playfully rolled her eyes and laughed. She fed Scorpius a forkful of cake and then gave him a quick peck. “We should go all out. The table names can be your greatest hits. We can do a drinking game… well, no, actually. That would _not_ be a good idea.”

“Wait until you hear my toast,” Scorpius teased. “My _per-_ fected puns will make everyone weep that they aren’t marrying me.”

“In that case, perhaps I’ll have my own personal drinking game,” Rose said, grinning at him before turning back to the selection of cakes in front of her. “You know, this has been my favourite part so far. Twenty flavours of Sugarplum’s cakes to try! Forget my dress or your tie, this is my biggest concern. Oooh… look, Scorpius! We haven’t tried the plum one!”

Rose looked excitedly over at her fiancé, her head then freezing once she realised the sudden tense posture that Scorpius had now taken. His body, which had been so relaxed moments ago, was now hunched over as his gazed was fixed onto the floor.

“Scorpius?” Rose put her arm around him, pulling him closer to her. “Scorpius?” She said again, her palm on his cheek. “What is it?”

Scorpius shook his head, composing himself, before looking up at her. She felt him forcibly relax against her and refused to let him go. “Just murkiness,” Scorpius said. “That’s all. But… there’s no murky flavoured cakes, is there? Let me try that plum one…”

_“Scorpius…”_

Scorpius sighed and pulled away from her. He viciously began to bite his fingers and smooth the hair by his ears down. “My grandfather just came in behind us to pick up a cake. My grandmother’s favourite, from what I heard him say. I - I think he realised it was us. I heard his voice waver and become irritated.”

“ _Ah_.”

The pair’s conversation was interrupted by the sound of Lucius Malfoy’s drawly voice from behind them. Rose turned immediately, a fierce ball of fire exploding in her stomach, and stared at the man. Scorpius turned with her, tensing again, but visibly ready to intervene if needed. 

The look of disgust on Lucius’s face was, perhaps, Rose thought, the most hateful thing that she had ever seen. Of course — there were others like him, but they were able to hide their contempt. 

Rose suspected that Lucius was able, too. In public. When he needed to. But that mask had slipped — this was his grandson, the Malfoy heir, sitting beside his future wife. The daughter of a Mudblood and a Bloodtraitor. 

Rose smiled confidently as she watched him snatch the cake from the cashier. He promptly threw the money down, turned, and marched away. 

Scorpius’s head turned back the moment he was gone. Rose watched, nervously, as he reached for a slice of cake.

“Scorpius,” she began, placing a comforting hand on his wrist. “Do you want to leave early so that we can talk about it?”

Scorpius shook his head as he fidgeted with his sleeves. “Murky, it’s murky. That’s all.”

Murky. The word that Scorpius always used whenever the subject of his grandparents was brought up. Murky, murky, murky. 

It didn’t regularly pre-occupy Scorpius’s mind. Time had passed. But it was there, the murkiness. It was always the same venting, the same words, the same hurt. Rose would listen to familiar thoughts and nod. Murkiness is often beyond advice.

“When was the last time that you saw him?” Rose asked. “I don’t think I’ve ever asked that, actually.”

“My mother’s funeral,” Scorpius replied. “That was when my father rejected him from our lives. It was out of grief.”

“No wonder. He didn’t like your mother very much.”

Scorpius nodded. “It’s just… a bit sad. It makes me sad but it shouldn’t. My dad loved him — _still_ loves him. He used to idolise him, Rose. Growing up. Grandfather… I don’t think — he wasn’t an awful parent. He just indirectly put his son in the worst circumstances. Does that make him an awful parent? If I — if I did that — to my child… I wouldn’t… I couldn’t even imagine. It’s murky. And my grandmother…”

“You loved her very much, growing up.”

“Yes. Before I realised why our family gatherings were so tense. Because of the values that she still believes in — Muggles being scum. But — she loved her son. She risked her _life_ to save her son. We wouldn’t have been here without her, would we? And I’ve… I’ve seen a world where…” Scorpius swallowed. “Murky.”

“I’m sorry, Scorpius.”

“Don’t be.”

The enthusiastic, blonde haired cake seller suddenly interrupted them.  She plonked herself down onto the seat in-front and clapped her hands together. “So!” She said. “Have we chosen a cake?”

“Not yet, I’m sorry,” Rose replied. “Can we come in next weekend again?”

“Of course! Oooooh, I forgot to tell you both!” The woman gushed. “Our cakes can let out an explosion at the top and form words using confetti!”

Scorpius turned to Rose, placing a hand on her thigh, and grinned. “I’m sure that I can come up with a worthy pun.”

The woman stared at them, baffled, before quickly composing back into her eager, pressing self. “Oh, yes, of course! Our clients normally choose things like ‘Mr and Mrs Malfoy’”.

“Oh, I’m not —”, Rose said quickly. She stopped when a sudden warmth rose up from her stomach, an uneasiness gurgling through her throat that prevented her from continuing. An uncomfortable silence had now filled the air between the three of them. Rose quickly cleared her throat, shifting in her seat. “We’ll get back to you on that.”

The woman nodded. “Of course, of course,” she said. “I understand. Your mother, she —”.

Rose snatched her bag and stood up. “Thank you, Linda. We’ll be back next week.”

* * *

Scorpius and Rose apparated back to her home. When they reached the gate, Rose storming ahead, Scorpius grabbed her hand. She stopped and spun around, pain now across her face.

“Rose,” Scorpius began as he twisted his fingers between hers. “I know — I know that this is your decision but — I just want you to know, I don’t mind… taking your name, or not, or hyphenating it. This is your choice — because I know that it’s a lot harder for you that it is for me.” Scorpius paused. “The Malfoy name has done enough harm.”

“Thank you, Scorpius,” Rose said. There was a tiredness already in her voice. “I just didn’t like how she mentioned my mother.”

Scorpius nodded. “I know.”

“They’re all going to analyse this, aren’t they? Whatever I decide to do.”

Scorpius stared at her glumly and he wondered how he could reply. Rose understood his silent answer and frowned.

“Oh well,” she said firmly. “Skeeter can do what she wants. This is my decision and I’m not going to allow myself to be tormented by it.”

“Exactly!” Scorpius responded. “We could always choose a new name.”

“A new name?”

“Yes… something like… Weasangerfoy! Or — or Malfoys the United!” Scorpius paused. “Or maybe not.”

Rose shook her head, laughing. “I love you,” she told him, going onto her tip-toes to give him a tender kiss. “I’ll see you on Tuesday, for dinner with your father?”

“Of course,” Scorpius said as he kissed her forehead. “Love you, Rose… _Weasangerfoy_.”

* * *

Rose arrived at Malfoy Manor that Tuesday night, bundled up in her Grandma-knitted scarf, and paused before she walked through the gates and up into the house.

At night, in the crisp winter coldness, Rose had always found that the Manor took a threatening presence.

She didn’t understand _why_. This building, and what it represented, no longer posed a threat to her. She wondered if it was the history — what had happened inside these walls, the blood that had been bled, the killing of innocents — that sent an uneasiness through her as she stood, staring at it in the darkness.

It would be half hers someday.

Draco had wondered if it would be possible, considering her blood status. It turned out that the Malfoys, centuries ago, had never even entertained the idea of their ancestors ruining their blood line. 

But here she was, standing in-front of the Manor, Rose Granger-Weasley, wearing a ring on her wedding finger that was as old as the Malfoy name itself.

Rose’s fingers played with the ring, moving it up and down, before she lifted up her head and strutted towards the entrance. 

She found Scorpius in his library, sitting in-front of the crackling fire in a velvet red armchair, diligently reading a book.

Rose smiled at the sight. “Hi.”

Scorpius jumped. He put the book down and walked towards her, kissing Rose’s cheek once he had reached her. “How was work?”

“Challenging. The best kind of day.”

“Good, I’m glad.”

They stared at each other, a slight uncomfortableness between them. Scorpius’s brain swirled with things to say — anything to ease his fiancé. He had opened his mouth when Rose spoke to him in a clear, loud voice.

“I’m taking your name.”

Scorpius blinked, unable to hide the surprise that had zoomed onto his face. “That’s… that’s…” He stuttered. “You’ll suit it!”

“I was considering Weasangerfoy,” Rose teased. “But I think Rose Malfoy sounds better. Don’t you?”

Scorpius nodded. “It sounds nice.”

“But I’m also keeping my name.”

A look of confusion etched its way onto Scorpius’s face. Rose could see his mind trying to work out what she meant. “Rose… Rose Malfoy-Granger-Weasley? I like it! I could… I could take your name too, if you’d like.”

Rose shook her head. “Not quite,” she said. “I want to keep my name, Scorpius. I’m Rose Granger-Weasley. It just seems like my identity, you know? But I was thinking, about your grandfather that day. At the look of disgust on his face. I _want_ to be a Malfoy because people like him and his ancestors would have never wanted me to be one.”

“You’re confusing me more than the goblins confuse the Ministry during rebellions.”

“I’m switching my name up a little. You’re aware of how full names are always used in the Wizengamot?” 

“Uhm, ya-huh?”

“Rose Granger-Weasley Malfoy, formally. In the Wizengamot. I’m moving it to my middle name because, _honestly_ , Scorpius, I really can’t be _bothered_ with a long name. So there. Rose Granger-Weasley Malfoy. Rose Malfoy for short.”

Scorpius wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into a passionate, hungry kiss. When he finally leaned back, Scorpius grinned. “Well, Ms R _o_ se Gr _a_ nger-W _ea_ sley M _a_ lfoy,” he began in a quintessentially formal and posh Wizengamot tone. “I am quite fond of it.”

Rose laughed and wrapped her arms around him. “So am I.”

* * *

Rose Granger-Weasley became Rose Granger-Weasley Malfoy four months later.

Rose walked down the aisle with her mother on one side of her, her father on the other. Rose wasn’t sure if she’d ever seen her father beam so much or her mother filled with such unspoken emotion. She felt, in that moment, as she walked towards Scorpius with her parents, like the most privileged person in the world.

Their vows were said, Scorpius in tears, Rose’s stomach clenching with emotion so powerful that she momentarily panicked over being able to respond. But she did, loudly and clearly, “I do”.

After their two week honeymoon in Wizarding and Muggle Europe, Rose went back to work. On her first day, she was faced with scrutinising legislation on criminalising the practice of purity-based inheritance within families.

Rose Granger-Weasley Malfoy had never felt so powerful. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very, very sorry for the late update! I've just been bombarded with Uni work and have been ill! :(


	23. Missed Potions

**1 YEAR LATER**

 

Rose once considered getting her O.W.L. results the proudest moment of her life.

Then, of course, she was appointed Head-Girl. _No_ , seventeen year old Rose had thought at the time, _this is the proudest moment of my life_. Her N.E.W.T results and subsequent job offer were rather major, too. But no — being a Head was extra special, Rose believed, since the role was reserved only for two people.

N.E.W.Ts, O.W.Ls, job offers, being Head-Girl… Rose was still very much proud of those achievements. But she was no longer an overly concerned teenager, overcome by the pressure that she had to live up to. Those achievements were good, great even, but they were nothing compared to _this_.

“I hereby declare the _Protection of Minors against the Press_ Act as law,” the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot declared, signing the parchment. Rose could hear the cheering of those who had supported the act, feel the touch of colleagues around her clapping her back, squeezing her arm, feel the hot tears streaming down her cheeks… 

“Well done, Rose,” Dominique whispered into her ear. Her voice was rough and hoarse after breaking down while testifying earlier today in support of the act. 

Rose turned to her, wanting to say thank you, but knowing that the words would struggle to form. She could only smile, her lip trembling, as Dominique pulled her against her chest and kissed the top of her head. 

Rose could feel the bright flashes from cameras rapidly flickering against her face. The press had been making much noise of this act being ‘hers’ — it had been proposed by her, worked on by her, testified by her and those closest to her… but the idea, of it being singularly hers, made Rose uncomfortable. Rose tensed up in Dominique’s arms, shifting her head away from the brightness.

“Do you want to go and see your mum?” Dominique whispered to her. 

Rose nodded, clinging onto her cousin as she led them through the crowd, out of the Wizengamot's legislative chamber and to her mother’s office.

Rose detached herself from Dominique and wiped away her tears. The door opened the moment her knuckles touched it. Rose saw her mother standing in the middle of the room, her arms outstretched, with wet remains trickling down her face. Rose began to cry again, rushing forward to greet her mother’s embrace.

“I’m so, so proud of you,” Hermione said, rubbing her back. “All of your hard work. I know how much effort you put into this.”

Rose nodded against her. “I didn’t ever need their validation that it was good. I _knew_ it was good… and important. I’m just glad it’s all paid off.”

“It was… especially to you,” Hermione paused, pulling Rose away from her to smile at Dominique. “To _us_. Our family.”

Dominique nodded. “It felt good to finally get my revenge on Skeeter today, after what she did to Rebecca and I when we were fifteen.”

“All of us felt the same, Dominique,” Hermione replied. 

“Rita will probably target us now,” Rose scoffed. “You, me, Dom, Al, Scorpius, Uncle Harry… everyone who testified. Everyone who had been targeted by our press when we were younger. But I don’t give a Murtlap! I’ll take it, so long as my children and every single other child in our world doesn’t have to endure what we went through so young.”

Hermione stared at her daughter as she spoke. Pride, and love, tangled up with a multitude of other, glowing emotions, choked her throat and prevented her from responding. She simply put both of her hands on either side of her daughter’s face, gently and lovingly stroking her skin. Rose understood and tilted her head against her mother’s. 

Hermione and Rose held together like that for several, silent moments. 

Finally, Hermione pulled back and frowned. “Your bags, under your eyes! Have you not been sleeping again?”

Rose rolled her eyes. “I’m twenty four, Mum! And I’ve been married for a year!”

“You’re lucky Scorpius isn’t a snitch,” Hermione said. “Or else I would be moving in with you two myself to ensure that you’re getting a good nights sleep.”

“Mum!” Rose exclaimed, shaking her head. “I’ve just been working on this! And it’s all been worth it!”

“Of course it has,” Hermione said, smiling. “Your hard work always does. Now, go home and have an early night.”

“Twenty four!” Rose objected again as she made her way back towards the door.“And married for a year!”

“And no work tomorrow!” Hermione called back. She turned towards her desk, feeling tender again, as the love and pride for her daughter swirled around inside of her.

* * *

Scorpius was waiting at the door for Rose’s return. He scooped her up, dramatically turning her round as she laughed loudly.

“So you heard the news, then?” Rose asked.

“Uh huh!” Scorpius grinned. “Proudest husband there has ever been! And I would know, I research history for a living.”

“That’s the greatest compliment,” Rose replied, leaning down to kiss him. “Is that cottage pie that I can smell?”

Scorpius beamed at her. “I always knew that the legislation would pass. I’ve been going to your grandma’s every night that you’ve been working late — to learn! I know it’s your favourite so I wanted you to have it tonight, to celebrate!”

“I’m very lucky to have you, am’t I?”

“Maybe,” Scorpius teased. “But the Wizarding World is far luckier to have you, Rose. What you’ve done today… it will change lives. I’ve seen… first hand.. and with Albus… and with _you_ … what the press can do to young people. We’re all very, very lucky to have your hard work and determination.”

Rose felt familiar tears form. “I love you,” was all that she could say, crushing her lips against his.

“And I love you,” Scorpius replied. “Now, I have wracked my brain for a suitable pun for the occasion and none could match up to the monumental nature of today. But I do have cottage pie, if that will be adequate?”

“Oh, absolutely,” Rose grinned as he led her into the kitchen.

To her —  and Scorpius’s —  own amazement, Rose managed to finish her dinner without falling asleep. Rose had no recollection as to when she finally blacked out; sleep came to her with a desperate suddenness — one which she gladly took. Her eyes fluttered open uncomfortably the following day as the summer sun painfully blazed through the window.

“You’re awake,” Scorpius said from beside her, looking up from his book.

“I don’t even want to know how long I’ve been sleeping for,” Rose replied, rubbing her eyes. “And I’m still tired.”

“Go back to sleep. It’s a Saturday and you’ve earned it,” Scorpius said.

A flicker of mischief made its way across Rose’s face. “I’m tired, but not tired enough to sleep. At least, not yet,” she said. “Care to tire me out? A little celebration?”

“Can I at least finish my chapter first?” Scorpius grinned widely at her.

“Finish the whole book,” Rose retorted, biting firmly down onto her lip.

“Sounds good…” Scorpius murmured, leaning into her. He ran his lips against hers and exhaled. “But books… they aren’t…”

Scorpius’s voice trailed off as desire overcame him. They began to kiss hungrily, the urgency back into them now that Rose had rested for the first time in weeks. Their bodies soon melted together, fighting each other for who could press their own more tightly against the other. Rose came in his arms; the pair panted in unison, refusing to let each other go.

A distant thought had formed in Rose’s mind. She felt as if she had forgotten something, last night… that she had meant to do… 

“What is it?” Scorpius asked.

Rose shook her head. “I think I’m just being paranoid about work. My body hasn’t adjusted to not having to worry about the act yet.”

Rose did not realise the source of her anxiety until two months later, as she woke up for the third time that week in a fit of nausea, the image of a missed contraception potion flashing across her mind as she emptied her stomach into their toilet.

* * *

“Rose Granger-Weasley Malfoy does not forget things, Dominique!” Rose exclaimed as she paced up and down her bathroom. “Especially not something as significant as a contraception potion!”

Dominique folded her arms and scoffed. “Well, Rose Granger-Weasley Malfoy, you did.” She waved the pregnancy stick around. “I’m still in shock that the Muggles pee on these sticks. Grandpa Weasley is wetting himself in excitement. Seriously, Rose, no one would have seen me getting a potion instead. I don’t understand —"

“Dom!” Rose interrupted. “Will you stop going off on a tangent! Don’t you understand what I’ve done! I’m Rose —“

“ _Granger-Weasley Malfoy and I don’t forget things!_ ” Dominique mimicked angrily. “Except! Whoops! You have! The piss-stick says you have!”

“Dom!”

“Alright, sorry,” Dominique said, throwing the stick into the bin. “Maybe it’s because my vagina only has sex with another vagina. I’m lacking a bit of empathy in this area.”

“I’ve never done something like this before. I don’t forget things.”

Dominique sighed and walked over to her cousin. She plopped herself down onto the floor beside her. “You’re more concerned about forgetting something than you are about being pregnant, you do know that, right?”

“I don’t forget things, Dom,” Rose repeated. “I absolutely can’t start now!”

“Rose! _Really_! You were exhausted from working on an excellent act that will change a lot of children’s lives. Possible _your_ —", Dominique stabbed her finger into Rose’s stomach. “Child’s life.”

Rose’s hand moved to where Dominique’s finger had been. She caressed the outside of her stomach gently while the inside swelled with an intense feeling of love.

Rose nodded. “Possibly.”

“You keep hacking on about how Rose Granger-Weasley Malfoy doesn’t forget things,” Dominique said softly. “But how does _Rose_ feel about what that little pee-stick revealed?”

Rose did not reply. She continued to silently caress her stomach as her lip trembled.

“When I saw it, for a split second, before I realised how _forgetful_ I had been, I felt ecstatic,” Rose said quietly. “Scorpius and I — we did want to wait until we were thirty. That was the plan. But we always spoke of having a family. I’ve always liked the thought.”

“We’ve both grown up surrounded by multitudes of amazing parents. And I can tell you, from that experience, that you and Scorpius will be wonderful, wonderful parents.”

Rose smiled sadly. “I know that,” she said. “But, _really_. I thought I’d grown out of the whole identity-issue drama.”

“You have,” Dominique replied. “But that doesn’t mean it won’t pop up now and again. _Rose_ , who is _not_ defined by her second name, worked so hard on an act to help her friends, family, and future generations against our malicious press. _Rose,_ again _not_ defined by her second name, got a little exhausted by this. She forgot to take her contraception potion. Rose, from what she’s told me, is going to be a mum - and a damn amazing one at that. Doesn’t sound so bad when I put it like that, does it?”

“True,” Rose hummed, a grin now on her face. “And _Rose_ quite likes that thought.”

 


	24. Warm Bread, Good Bread

When Victoire had been told that Rose was pregnant, she immediately owled her cousin with a letter that gushed in excitement at the wonderfulness of pregnancy. Rose, at the time, shrugged it off, unable to understand the significance of the nine months of waiting prior to having the actual baby. As her pregnancy developed, however, she did begin to secretly enjoy it: going to have a scan at the healer’s, hearing her future child’s heartbeat for the first time, finding out that she would be having a daughter, her first kick… 

Moments such as those were now tinted with a longing nostalgia as Rose sat on the toilet for the fifth time that night. Being eight months pregnant, Rose had concluded to a disappointed Victoire last week, was an “absolutely horrific time” filled with constantly needing to pee, swollen ankles, overly active saliva, and a breaking back.

Scowling for not the first time in the past twenty-four hours, Rose stood up and flushed the toilet. She heaved her body up, scuffling over to the sink to wash her hands. 

“That’s the fifth time now,” she said under her breath. “Please move away from my bladder, little one. I’ll buy you whatever you want whenever you’re older.”

Turning the light off, Rose walked back into her bedroom where Scorpius lay sleeping. His arm was outstretched from where she had been five minutes ago as he took little, soft breaths. Rose smiled at the sight and her hand instinctively reached out to rub her belly. 

Her mind was brought back to six months ago, when she told Scorpius of her pregnancy. It had been the same day that she herself had found out: she had wanted to wait, wanted to make it special, as he would have probably done if the roles were reversed, but it had come out of her.

_“Are you certain that you don’t need me to go out and get you any potions? Any Muggle tablet thing-ys?” Scorpius had asked that night after he had come in from work. They were lounging together in their living room, Rose lying against his chest, her mind elsewhere, as they watched the Muggle six o’clock news._

_“Oh no, no. I’m fine,” Rose said quickly. She felt Scorpius shift against her as he tensed._

_“Rose… we’ve been together for a long time now. I know when you’re lying. You’re not as good of a liar as Scorpius the Un-anxious.”_

_Rose removed herself from Scorpius’s chest and nervously smoothed down her skirt. “You’re right,” she replied casually. “I’m not feeling very well. I just didn’t want to ruin our night. I’m going to get some water.”_

_“Rose…” Scorpius said, grabbing onto her arm. “What’s wrong?”_

_Rose shook him away and continued to make her way through to their kitchen. Scorpius followed her, a feeling of uneasy panic making its way through his body.  She had her back to him; her arms leaning over their sink as she watched the tap run._

_“Rose,” Scorpius said again, moving towards her._

_“Your book,” Rose said in a heavy but quiet voice. “I forgot all about your book.”_

_“My book? The one on the Goblin Rebellions that I’ve been commissioned to write?”_

_Rose turned around and Scorpius froze at the sight of the tears that were leaking down her face. Rose quickly wiped them away, standing up straight, and composed herself. “I’m pregnant,” she said and gave Scorpius no time to react. “And I want to keep it. I forgot to take my potion — I’m so, so… I’m so sorry… I don’t forget things, Scorpius. Dominique… she…” Rose shook her head. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. This wasn’t our plan. And now… your book… Scorpius…” Rose began to choke up, her tears flowing down her face again. She bit her lip and shook her head in disgust at herself. “I’ve ruined our plan. Your book! You can’t… not with…’’_

_Scorpius rushed towards her then; the suddenness and ferocity that he moved with almost toppled him over as he did so. He swayed, grabbing onto the kitchen cabinet to prevent him from falling. Rose stared at him, uncomprehending, as he wrapped his arms around her._

_After moments of him holding her close, rubbing her back, Scorpius finally spoke. “At least I know how much of a dedicated history geek you truly believe I am. For that, I am flattered.”_

Rose smiled at the memory as she walked over to their bed, hovering before she climbed in. _Why is it so difficult to sleep comfortably_ , Rose grumbled to herself. _I mean, really — I’ve tried all of the positions and  —_

“Ah!” Rose exclaimed as she fell down onto the bed, landing right on-top of Scorpius’s outstretched arm.

Scorpius jumped up out of his sleep; he rolled over, instinctively and quickly grabbing his wand, before turning back to her. “Rose?” Scorpius said. “Rose? Lumos! Are you alright? What’s wrong?”

“She kicked hard again,” Rose replied. “After playing with my bladder all night.”

Scorpius calmed and smiled sympathetically at her. “Not long to go now, though. It’ll be over before we know it.”

“Yes. I won’t need to wake up to go to the toilet anymore. My pelvic muscles might be so poor after the birth that I’ll wee myself instead. Wonderful.”

Scorpius bit his lip to stop himself from laughing as Rose scowled at him. He pulled her against his chest, his hand moving to her stomach. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It was my decision and I can’t wait to meet her, really. I’m just — _ugh_. I’m sick of not being able to properly kiss you without saliva dripping everywhere. I do not understand biologically _why_ carrying around a foetus makes me produce so much saliva! I mean — where is the logic, Scorpius?! Where! And I just want us to have sex again without feeling like I’m going to pee myself. And I’m sick of napping all of the time during the day when I want to do some research for laws for when I return to work! All I do is sleep! And eat!” Rose gasped. “I didn’t even tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

“Bread, Scorpius.”

“Bread?”

“It’s all I crave,” Rose said, a pressing intensity to her voice. “Bread. All of it. It’s all I eat. I try not to do it in-front of you because it’s embarrassing, really, sitting with a whole loaf of bread—”

“I kind of like it,” Scorpius said. “We’ve come full circle.”

Rose laughed and relaxed against him. “I _am_ excited. I’m just ready to get it over and done with, you know?”

“Of course you are, Rose,” Scorpius replied, grinning. “When have you ever _not_ been ready?”

Rose smiled. “Well, you never know. She could have made a very early appearance and we would have been left with no cot, no baby basket, no clothes, no nappies, no toys, no dummies, no blankets, no books — wait, no, you’ve made that impossible…” 

“She’ll thank me one day.”

“But I was thinking, earlier today, there’s one thing that we haven’t decided on.”

“I thought we both had a silent, natural agreement that Albus would be her Godfather.”

“Obviously, if he can ever wrap his head around us having a child. But — that wasn’t the thing,” Rose said. “We haven’t chosen a name yet, Scorpius.”

“Are you implying that we didn’t silently agree on Bathilda?”

“Scorpius!” Rose exclaimed, although she laughed. “Don’t scare our poor child from the womb!”

“I can assure you that little Bathilda Malfoy will wear her name with pride.”

“Absolutely not,” Rose replied. “I did have a name in mind, though. But if you’re not comfortable with it, we won’t and it will be settled now.”

“Nothing will separate me from my deep bond with the idea of a Bathilda Malfoy, but let’s hear it.”

“Astoria. Astoria Malfoy, after your mum.”

Scorpius’s face softened; Rose could see his eyes filling with liquid as the name swam around his brain. “I…I thought… when you were fifteen, Rose,” Scorpius swallowed. “You said it was foolish that Harry and Ginny named their children after —”

“I was fifteen,” Rosie interrupted. “I hadn’t realised that it was never Albus’s name that caused him problems growing up. It will be the same with our daughter. If she…”

“She won’t.”

“But if she _does_. If she finds it difficult, knowing who she’s related to, her name will do little,” Rose said. “I worry every day, over that — and I know, I truly know, that her name won’t cause it.”

Scorpius nodded, smiling. “You’re right. I think that she will like it, being named after her grandmother. My mum would have liked it too. Thank you, Rose.”

“But if you or my dad asks, you tell them that we’ve chosen Bathilda, alright?”

“Absolutely,” Scorpius said. “I’ll think of a pun for a middle name. Dad will love — and by love, I mean take me to court for custody of his grandchild — that.” 

“I’m still in awe that we’ve managed to keep the gender a secret from everyone,” Rose remarked. “I love it. Everyone is convinced that it’ll be a boy and I love it, the thought of this little female Malfoy, the first in two centuries, coming and surprising everyone! Don’t yo- Scorpius?”

“Astoria Hermione,” Scorpius said softly. “Astoria Hermione Malfoy.”

Scorpius saying the name out loud almost stunned Rose. There was a sense of reality to it — that, this time next month, Astoria Hermione Malfoy would exist; but, mingled within it, the sentimentality of Rose being able to honour her strong, bold, brave mother and the equally-so Astoria.

Finally, Rose nodded. “We could have never chosen anything else, really,” she said as a yawn escaped from her mouth. “Right, I am going back to sleep until I inevitably need to pee again.”

“Will I let you lie in?” Scorpius asked her as they settled down to sleep. 

“Please,” Rose replied. “Oh, and another thing. A very, very important another thing.”

“Yes?”

“Be the darling father of our child and go out to the bakery and get me fresh bread. I do not, absolutely not, want store bought bread. I want it freshly baked. Try and time it for when you’re waking me up, so that it’s still warm when I wake up.”

“Yes, m’am. Goodnight, Rose.”

“Night, Bread-head.”

 


	25. Astoria Hermione

Astoria Malfoy was born two weeks later.

Rose hadn’t realised, at first: that her daughter had been born. She had been too overwhelmed by the pain; her labour had progressed so quickly, so suddenly, so _early_ , that she did not realise that it was over until moments after when a piercing wail filled the room at St Mungo’s.

She looked up, her mouth falling open slightly and tears beginning to form, as the Healer lifted her bloody child up so that she could see her.

She could hear her mother, still dressed in her pyjamas from when she had rushed out to be there, letting out a gasp and then a sob from beside her. Scorpius remained silent, too awestruck at the sight of his newborn daughter to make a sound.

“A girl, as expected,” the Healer said. She flicked her wand and cleaned the blood off of Astoria’s deep, tanned skin. “And a big, healthy baby too. No wonder she was ready to be born early. A very prepared little one, she is.”

“She takes after you already, Rose,” Scorpius said from beside her. Rose looked up at his grinning face, tears leaking down from his red eyes.

“Would you like to come and cut through the cord, Mr Malfoy?” The Healer asked.

Scorpius nodded and leaned down to kiss Rose’s sweaty forehead. His lips trailed to her ears, where he whispered “I love you” to her. He struggled to compose himself as he prepared to hold his daughter; his shaky hands reaching for his wand, a look of dazed awe plastered across his face as he stumbled towards where the Healer stood.

Scorpius flicked his wand, hands still shaking, and sliced through the cord. Astoria wailed out as the Healer passed her to Scorpius; he held her with a nervous gentleness, as if nothing had ever mattered more than holding her properly. “Shhh,” Scorpius said, rocking her. He looked up at Rose and, with the brightest smile on his face, brought Astoria over to her.

“Hello,” Rose said quietly as Scorpius handed her the crying baby. She held her tight against her bare chest, desperate for her daughter to feel and be comforted by her warm body. Rose’s tears began to stream down her face heavily then and her body felt like it was going to burst, so overwhelmed by the joy and happiness that she felt. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Scorpius laughed from beside her, bending down to reach for Astoria’s little hand. He took it in his, wonder in his eyes.

“You’re very lovely,” Rose continued. She felt like the words were gushing uncontrollably and, yet, in this moment, Rose felt no embarrassment. “So beautiful. Is that a tuft of  blonde hair that I can see?  Your Grandpa Weasley won’t be very happy with that. But I love it — you’re a perfect little thing and I love you.”

Hermione let out another loud sob from beside her. Rose looked over and beamed at her Mother’s joy. She shifted so that Hermione could get a better look at Astoria; Hermione moved forwards and stroked her granddaughter’s face gently, her tears falling quicker. 

“This is why we fought,” Hermione murmured quietly as she caressed her granddaughter’s cheek. “This is why we fight.”

* * *

The sound of her daughter’s crying disorientated Rose at first. In her exhaustion, it took her brain several moments to click and for the memories of the night to come back to her. She was not dreaming. The cries were real. She was a mother.

“Shhh,” Rose heard Scorpius say from across the room. Her eyes opened to reveal Scorpius standing with Astoria in his arms as he gently rocked her. “Shhh. Mummy’s…”, Scorpius noticed that Rose had now awakened and frowned. “Well, Mummy _was_ sleeping.”

Rose beamed at the sight and held her arms open. “Hello, my beautiful! Oh! Look at her little knitted hat. Did you put it on her?”

Scorpius grinned and walked over to Rose. “I did. It’s the one that your dad got for her. I think she likes it. It’s cosy.”

“Well, she looks lovely. She must be hungry,” Rose remarked as Scorpius passed Astoria to her. “How long have I been asleep for?”

“Not for too long. Around an hour,” Scorpius replied. He sat down on the bed as Rose adjusted herself to feed Astoria; Scorpius seemed to radiate, Rose has noticed, whenever he looked at his daughter. His disbelief at the sight shined through, as did the twangs of anxiousness that Scorpius had always fought so hard to rid himself of. “You missed a few major milestones, though.”

“Oh _really_? Did she start walking and talking?” 

“No, but you’re warm as to the significance,” Scorpius said, grinning as he leaned over to caress Astoria’s tiny arm. “I would say that it was maybe even more important than her first word.”

“Hmm… did she respond to the word ‘Bathilda?’”

“I wish!” Scorpius replied. “But no, not this time. Little Astoria has just received her very first pun from her doting dad.”

“Oh dear,” Rose said, looking down at Astoria and caressing her cheek. “I am so sorry.”

“There’s absolutely nothing to be sorry for,” Scorpius replied. “She loved it! Didn’t you, Astoria?”

Rose laughed as Astoria continued to concentrate on getting fed. “At least she’s blissfully unaware,” Rose said. “What was it?”

After dramatically clearing his throat, Rose watched as Scorpius stood and gave a little bow. “Astoria is my little… Mal _joy_.”

“Oh dear Dumbledore,” Rose remarked. She bit her lip and shook her head to suppress her laughter. “Poor Astoria.”

“Correction: Astoria Mal _joy_.”

“Stop! You’re distressing her!” Rose laughed. “My poor, poor baby.”

“On Christmas, I will awake singing ‘it’s time for _Maltoys for the Maljoy_!’”

“I’m going to forgive you since you haven’t slept all night,” Rose replied. “And I almost broke your hand earlier. When did your dad leave? I tried to fall asleep quickly. I didn’t want to intrude when your dad… well, you know, started crying.”

“Oh, he’s fine,” Scorpius said, raising a hand. “Just a bit overwhelming for him, I think. Especially since… since she’s named after Mum. He’s been worrying about it a lot. About… her finding out… about when he was younger. But he’s fine. He will be fine.”

Rose looked down at her daughter, peacefully feeding off of her, and smiled. She was innocent: innocent to the wrongs of her world which her two families had played such crucial roles in. Innocent to the dark mark under her Grandfather’s shirt as he held her for the first time. Innocent as to why he cried. Innocent, at her birth, when her Grandma said this is why she fought. Rose longed to keep Astoria’s innocence for as long as possible.

“It will all be ok,” Rose replied. “Astoria makes sure of that.”

As Scorpius opened his mouth to respond, Astoria detached herself and let out a little squeak.

“You, Astoria, are getting cuter by the second,” Rose remarked. “And I’m not complaining.”

Astoria squeaked again, shifting in her mother’s arms, and prompting Rose and Scorpius to burst out into fits of amazed laughter. Scorpius was looking tenderly at Rose, leaning in to kiss her, when they were interrupted by a knock at the door. Grinning, and aware of who it was, Scorpius opened the door with his wand and turned.

Albus stood awkwardly at the threshold. He was carrying two large cream gift bags in his arms as he twisted his body to peak in hesitantly, his eyes flickering to Astoria in Rose’s arms. 

“Malfoys,” he grinned at Rose and Scorpius before turning his head to Astoria. “Mini Malfoy.”

Scorpius sprung up and rushed over to Albus. He flung him into a tight hug, one that, despite the friends’s history with hugging, took Albus aback. 

“You’re nearly as surprised as my dad was,” Rose said. 

“Albus!” Scorpius said as he pulled back. “Come to meet my little… _Maljoy_?”

“I have to say, Scorpius, I’m disappointed,” Albus replied. “You have had nine months and that’s the best that you can come up with?”

“Well, Bathilda likes it!” Scorpius protested.

Albus looked over at Rose in shock. “Bathilda?!” He exclaimed.

“Ha! Albus, really. Do you think I would allow my firstborn child to be called Bathilda?” Rose rolled her eyes. “While it is a testament to Scorpius that you believed him, no, her name isn’t Bathilda. It’s Astoria Hermione.”

“That’s a nice name.”

Rose looked back down at her daughter and held her hand, smiling. “It’s a lovely name for a lovely baby,” she replied. Astoria began to squirm around in her arms as she let out little cries of discomfort. “Oooh, I’m sorry! Are you getting restless about meeting your Godfather? Albus, come over here and take her from me. It’s alright, Astoria! He’s coming… Albus?”

Rose looked up to see Albus staring blankly at mother and daughter. She turned to Scorpius, his eyes fixed firmly on the ground, and scowled. “Scorpius…” Rose began.

“I was going to do it the day after tomorrow!” Scorpius objected. “But she came so early! We only decided two weeks ago!”

“You want me to be her Godfather?” Albus interjected.

Rose let out a loud, barking laugh. “Really, Albus?”

“Who else would we choose, Albus?” Scorpius said. “You’re my best friend, Rose’s cousin, and we both love you. There’s no one that we would rather have.”

“I… well… wow,” Albus responded. “I just though that, I don’t know, maybe you two thought that the Potters and Godfathers were a cursed pair. I mean, even in recent memory, Remus _did_ throw up all over James at his christening…”

“Well, there’s no one else who we would rather have our daughter throw up on,” Scorpius replied. “Will you, Albus?”

Albus stared at the baby girl in Rose’s arms for several moments before smiling widely. “Can’t reject her to her face, can I?”

Grinning at his friend, Scorpius walked over to Rose and took Astoria from her. She began to squirm again in Scorpius’s arms, crying out as he moved her over to Albus. 

“Is she alright?” Albus asked, walking hesitantly away from Scorpius and sitting down.

Rose rolled her eyes. “Really, Albus, you’ve held millions of little Weasley babies!”

“But they’ve never cried like this!”

“Like _this_?!”

“She just likes to cause a little fuss whenever we move her around,” Scorpius interrupted as he moved in to carefully transfer Astoria to Albus. “She’ll be fine once she settles into your arms.”

Albus peered down nervously at the squirming, wailing baby and questioned if she just didn’t take to him. Finally, after another minute of Astoria trying to settle, she calmed and gazed up at her Godfather.

“Well, you’re nice when you aren't fussing,” Albus remarked. “There’s presents for her in the bags. One from me, one from mum and dad.”

“Spoilt little baby you are!” Rose cooed at Astoria as Scorpius picked them up.

“Rose, you’re terrifying. Between that voice and Scorpius’s _Maljoy_ , I am genuinely concerned for my Goddaughter’s wellbeing.”

“Albus, I gave birth to that 8lb child in your arms without sleeping for twenty-four hours and I’ve only slept for one hour since. My boobs are on fire from feeding her, I’m not sure if I want to ever sit down on a chair again, and a lot of other things that I do not wish to tell my cousin. Let me fuss over my daughter,” Rose snapped back. “Don’t worry. I’ll be back to my usual self once I’m less sleep deprived.”

“Look, Astoria!” Scorpius exclaimed then, waving a navy blue blanket that he had removed from the gift bag. “Here, Albus! Take it and wrap it over her.”

“I got it when I was in America with dad,” Albus replied as he adjusted the blanket. “It’s one of those charmed comforting blankets that soothes babies.”

“That is infinitely useful,” Scorpius said. “Thank you, Albus.”

“How are Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione enjoying being grandparents, anyway? Draco?”

“Oh, they’re adoring it,” Rose said. “I thought I would need to practically grab Astoria back from Dad earlier.”

“You know, Albus, my Dad said something last month to me about becoming a parent. I think Harry might agree.”

“And what might that be?” Albus responded.

“That when she is born, and when I look at her for the first time, the thought of her getting her little mittens on a time-turner will make me physically sick.”

“And?” Rose said.

“I am going to be establishing a foundation. _Father’s Coalition Against the Misuse of Time-Turners._ ”


	26. Moments and Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 2 more chapters to go!

_**Five months later** _

After Astoria was born, Scorpius began to have nightmares.

Dreams about the alternative world where Voldemort reigned. A world where neither his daughter, nor wife, nor best friend, nor any of his new family existed.  On some nights, he would dream of Delphi; of her growing up abused and unloved. On others, he would dream of Voldemort in his orphanage. Harry sometimes crept into them. On one occasion, he tearfully begged Scorpius to let him out of his cupboard. As Harry screamed and cried, Scorpius woke up shaking.

“You’re alright,” Rose said as she pulled him against her chest. “It was just another nightmare.” She glanced over her shoulder in order to check that Astoria had not woken up inside her cot. “Everyone is fine.”

“She’s going to grow up so loved,” Scorpius said frantically against her. “So loved.”

Rose tried to keep that night in mind today, as she watched her father fuss over Astoria. It wasn’t that she minded — Astoria loved Ron and Rose loved watching them. But Ron was now half an hour late in going back to work and Rose was still very much Hermione Granger’s daughter.

“Dad,” Rose said, raising her voice. “You need to get back to work. You can’t leave Uncle George alone in the shop!”

Ron didn’t seem to hear her. He continued to spoon pea purée into Astoria’s mouth as he babbled away and pulled funny faces. Astoria would giggle along loudly and, as much as Rose was stressed by her father’s tardiness, the sound made her heart swell.

“Dad!” Rose repeated again, this time standing up and walking quickly over to them. “You’re half an hour late!”

“Rosie, Astoria hasn’t finished her lunch yet,” Ron responded. “Can’t deprive my granddaughter of her lunch, can I?”

“You’re dragging the spoon against the bottom of the plate as you speak,” Rose replied, moving in to grab Astoria.

“Wait, Rosie, I need to do her favourite trick first,” Ron grinned as he dramatically pulled out a bar of soap from his pocket. He rubbed it between his palms, where it magically loosened into liquid, before spreading it across Astoria’s face. Astoria began to shriek with laughter as the soapy bubbles spread across and down her face, taking the shape of a large and long beard. “It tickles her skin.”

Rose couldn’t deny the smile that peaked onto her face. “She does seem to like it,” Rose replied. “But, really, Dad. Work!”

“Fine, fine,” Ron grumbled, wiping the bubbly beard from Astoria’s face before Rose took her into her arms. “I’ll be getting my lunch break changed since I don’t like that she’s still napping when it begins.”

“I’m sure that Astoria would be very happy if you did that,” Rose responded, smiling as she leaned in to kiss her Dad’s cheek in goodbye. 

As Ron dressed himself in his scarf and jacket and prepared to floo back, a grumbling sound arose from the fireplace. Within moments, Draco had gracefully arrived through it, dusting off his elegant green robes.

Uncomfortableness swept into the room when the two men glared at each other. Rolling her eyes, Rose kissed Astoria’s hand, and whispered to her, “your Grandma is always right about white men, you know.”

“Ron,” Draco nodded.

“Draco,” Ron responded. “Nice weather out there.”

“Indeed.”

“Alright, Dad, Uncle George is going to be in our chimney any second now if you don’t hurry,” Rose said, guiding her father forward. “We’ll see you tomorrow night with mum.”

Ron nodded and leaned in to kiss Astoria’s cheek goodbye, relaxing as he did so. Rose smiled as she watched them and the love that so clearly shone from Ron’s eyes for his granddaughter. Rose lifted Astoria’s hand up to wave goodbye as Ron took the floo powder and disappeared. 

“You two are unbelievable,” Rose said as she turned to Draco. “It’s amazing how you couldn’t make amends with Uncle Harry until the world was literally coming to an end. Utterly amazing.”

“Your father and I are quite civilised now, actually,” Draco said. “I refer to him as ‘Ron’, he refers to me as ‘Draco’, and he’s never commented on my hair in years.”

“That’s because Scorpius and I threatened to remove you both from our wedding,” Rose replied. “Would you like to hold her?”

“Oh — yes, of course,”  Draco said, visibly tensing as Rose passed Astoria into his arms. “I’m…” Draco paused and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. My grandfather isn’t how I would like to model myself on with Astoria.”

Rose smiled sympathetically and gently rubbed Astoria’s elbow. “That’s alright. You’ll get there and, in the mean time, I don’t think she minds much. I can tell when she likes being in someone’s arms.”

Draco turned towards Astoria. Her little, curious face stared at him before breaking into a wide, toothless smile. Draco smiled back. “Where is Scorpius?”

“He’s at lunch with Albus. He’ll be back in an hour or so,” Rose said. “I can come upstairs and read, if you want, and you can sit down here alone with her.”

“Of course not,” Draco replied. “I’m not here for Scorpius, actually. I have a present for my granddaughter.”

Rose let out a playful, dramatic gasp and leaned in to cup the back of her daughter’s head. “Did you hear that, Astoria?! Lucky little girl you are today!” 

Draco reached into his (expanding) jacket pocket and took out a medium sized golden box. He handed it to Rose as he watched Astoria, smiling. “It’s custom made from France.” 

Rose opened the lid of the box carefully, revealing thick, light yellow tissue paper. Underneath it, Rose rustled and lifted out a delicately stitched and detailed light brown mockingbird soft toy. A large grin now on her face, Rose lifted it towards Astoria and waved it in front of her face.

“Do you see, Astoria? It’s Daddy’s patronus!”

“And her grandmother’s, too,” Draco said. “I thought that it would be nice.”

“It is, Draco,” Rose replied, handing the toy to Astoria who clenched it tightly. “She likes it. She’s taken to throwing toys around so it’s a good sign that she’s holding on to it.”

“I am glad. She has her grandmother’s name, her eyes, and I would like her to have this too.”

“Scorpius and I would like that,” Rose said softly. “Scorpius told me… after she had been born… that you were — you were _anxious_ about her finding out about your past.”

Draco inhaled. “Yes. Yes, I am.”

“Well, you shouldn’t be,” Rose replied firmly. “We’ll tell her about our history carefully and properly. I won’t let her dislike you for past mistakes and, in my heart, I know that she won’t be someone who could.”

“Scorpius did — when he was bullied at school after Astoria passed away,” Draco said. “Resentment is very ease to create.”

“Well, it’s even easier to stop.”

Draco’s eyes moved from Rose to Astoria; they watched her with a sadness as she looked around the room, oblivious to the conversation in front of her. “Her maternal grandmother was tortured in my home,” he finally said, quietly.

“Yes, but we’ll teach her how her history can empower her. I won’t, Scorpius won’t, and my parents certainly won’t raise her to dislike her own grandfather because he made poor decisions when we was younger. Astoria deserves better than that.”

After staring at Astoria in silence for several moments, Draco reluctantly nodded and turned to Rose. “What is done is done,” he said. 

The fireplace began to rumble again. Within moments, Scorpius had appeared down it, his tall and lanky form arriving much less gracefully than his father’s. His eyes flickered to Astoria upon arrival and his face brightened.

“Astoria!” Scorpius said, rushing forward to take her from Draco. “Did you miss me?”

“You’ve been gone for an hour, Scorpius,” Rose said, a smile on her lips that Scorpius pecked. “And you’re an hour early.”

“I missed her. She’s always doing something new,” Scorpius replied. “Plus, Albus doesn’t mind. He has, uhm, _other_ places to be.” 

Rose raised her eyebrows at him. 

“Later,” Scorpius said, leaning in to kiss her again. He noticed the mockingbird that Astoria was still firmly clutching in her little hand and beamed. “What’s this?”

“Someone brought her a little present,” Rose replied, smiling at Draco.

“Did they? Who got you this, Astoria, huh?” Scorpius said as he raised her hand to stroke the toy. 

Astoria stared at Scorpius blankly before turning to Draco and letting out a joyful shriek. Draco caught Rose’s eye, his own watery, and smiled. 

* * *

_**Five months later** _

“It’s okay, you’re alright. It’s just a bit of thunder.”

At Rose’s words, another blast of thunder shuddered through the house. Rose jumped at its loudness, squishing a frightened Astoria in her arms. At her mother’s movement, Astoria let out another screaming wail and buried her face tighter into her mother’s chest.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Rose mumbled, rubbing her daughter’s back. She could hear Scorpius’s footsteps going up the stairs and leading into their bedroom. “Albus was right: the blanket does have a limit as to its comforts.”

“I brought her this,” Scorpius said, handing the mockingbird to Rose. “And here’s the milk.”

“Astoria,” Rose said, a lullaby quality to her voice. “Daddy’s brought you something to drink.”

Astoria looked up at the sound of her mother’s voice, her eyes red and watery, and began to squirm in her arms. Her little arm reached out for something, moving past the milk, and aiming at the wand sticking out of Scorpius’s pyjama trousers.

“Oh,” Rose said, realising. “She wants… she thinks that magic can fix it.”

Scorpius and Rose grinned at each other.

“I’m sorry,” Scorpius said, shaking his head. “It doesn’t work like that.”

Whining, Astoria wiggled uncomfortably around in Rose’s arms, grabbing the mockingbird, and holding it closely to her chest.

“You should go to bed, Rose,” Scorpius said as he took Astoria from her. “I can push back beginning my research tomorrow; you need to be up to start work at nine.”

Rose shook her head and placed her hands on her hips. “No. We’re partners. I’m staying up with you until she’s asleep.”

“I won’t even try to argue with you,” Scorpius responded, though a grin was on his face. “Let’s get you a drink to calm you down, hmm, Astoria?” He moved to sit on the bottom of their bed with Astoria against his chest. He gave her the bottle.

“Poor thing,” Rose murmured, sitting down beside Scorpius and resting her face against his shoulder. “She’ll be all tired now for when she visits the graveyard with your dad later.”

“I’ll let him know. He can put her down for a nap before —” The bellowing sound of another lash of thunder interrupted Scorpius. Astoria spat out the milk, pushing it away, as it dripped down her chin and down onto her pyjamas. Distressed, she began to frantically cry again.

“Not so much of a _Maljoy_ tonight, are you?” Scorpius teased. He reached into his pocket and withdrew his wand, being careful as to not to let Astoria make a grab for it. “Accio picture-book.”

“That will definitely calm her,” Rose said as she cleaned up the milk from Astoria’s face with a flick of her wand. “I knew I had a baby with a bookworm for a reason.”

“Obviously — that and my irresistible geekish charm.”

The trio made their way into the bed. Astoria lay between them, her tears now dry as the thunder calmed, and snuggled into her mother’s chest. Scorpius opened the magical picture book and took out his wand. He tapped it twice, opening it, and releasing a kaleidoscope of purple butterfly illusions. Astoria giggled at the sight and began to swot the air to catch them.

As the pages turned, the book exploded with more illusions and bright sparks. Astoria’s mouth dropped into a little ‘o’ every time the page turned; clapping at every illusion and squealing in delight. Her daughter’s joy, Rose concluded, was the most relaxing sound in the world.

Astoria’s eyes soon began to flutter. She fell asleep against her father’s chest, her little hands still pressed against the book. Rose and Scorpius looked at each other and smiled.

“We should move her,” Scorpius murmured. “She won’t let you get up tomorrow if you don’t.”

“Leave her,” Rose responded as she stroked strands of Astoria’s blonde hair. “I don’t think I have it in me to move her, anyway.”

“It’s funny,” Scorpius began. “How for ten years, our world couldn’t understand the magic that saved Harry’s life.”

Rose leaned in to gently kiss her daughter’s forehead. “Yes,” Rose replied. “Right now, it seems like the easiest piece of magic in the world.”

* * *

_**Two months later** _

“Rose, quick, come and look!”

Scorpius’s voice dragged Rose’s thoughts away from the photos and cards sitting on the table in-front of her. She turned around, a silver frame still in her hand, and smiled at the sight.

A ‘Happy 1st Birthday’ banner behind her on their wall, Astoria had fallen asleep in her high chair. Her little face, with a tall, purple party hat placed on her head, had fallen forwards and planked itself on-top  of the extra slice of cake that her parents had given her. Chocolate frosting was now plastered across her face.

“It’s not funny,” Scorpius said, his lips trembling. “But it is, really.”

Rose shot him a look. 

“Just let me get a photo first,” Scorpius said, grabbing for the exhausted camera that sat on their table from the festivities. He flashed it at Astoria, grinning. “Her dedication for cake is truly admirable. Eleven-year old sweet-loving Scorpius and I are beaming with pride.”

“My poor baby,” Rose said, shaking her head as Scorpius picked up Astoria. “But it will be a funny photo for her 17th, won’t it?”

“Don’t even mention that. I’m struggling enough with the fact that it’s her first birthday today,” Scorpius replied, swotting the cake at the side of Astoria’s face with his finger. “Want some?” 

Astoria began to shift in Scorpius’s arms before Rose could reply. Her eyes opened warily and she began to rub at them. 

“You had a little accident, ‘Storia,” Rose explained, grinning at Scorpius. “Here.” She reached for her wand and performed a cleaning spell. “All better.” 

Astoria patted her face and pouted. 

“Don’t worry,” Scorpius said softly. “We’ve still got some left-overs for tomorrow.”

“If you eat all of your vegetables at dinner,” Rose interjected. 

“We’ll see what Daddy can do behind Mummy’s back.”

Ignoring them, Astoria reached for her party-hat and scowled. “Ah-Da-da!” She exclaimed, pulling the hat off and handing it to Scorpius. Satisfied, she nudged into her father’s chest and shut her eyes again. 

Rose and Scorpius watched her fall back asleep in silence. 

“What’s that you’re holding?” Scorpius asked.

Rose raised the frame and smiled. Inside of it held a photo of Scorpius and Astoria at a beach in Cornwall two months ago. Astoria, overly-wrapped up against the rain, was beaming and giggling at the camera as Scorpius repeatedly leaned in to kiss her cheek. 

“She’s going to grow up very happy,” Scorpius said.

Rose agreed.

* * *

_**5 and a half years later** _

Her children play on a graveyard.

Malfoy Manor, where countless people were slaughtered and tortured. But her daughters are oblivious to the horrors of the past. They play and shriek with joy and laugh and make Rose momentarily mourn the inevitable loss of their innocence in the future.

Astoria is now six. Her blonde ringlets fall to her shoulders and swoosh about as she chases after her younger sister. Ava, two years her junior, shrieks as she plays along. She carries herself with a Malfoy’s grace, complete with their hair.  Aurora, who is two, sits on the ground and watches with a fascinated glint in her eyes. She’s the only one to have inherited the fiery Weasley hair. Beside her, baby Alexandra excitedly claps her hands as she watches.

Their happiness is momentarily interrupted by a loud cry from Alexandra. Rose notices that a butterfly has landed on her little knee; laughing to herself, she raises to go and calm her.

“What’s the matter?” Scorpius says from behind her.

Rose turns to him. “She’s alright,” Rose replies. “A butterfly just flew onto her.”

Scorpius laughs as Rose turns back around. She’s about to walk over to Alexandra when she realises that her tears have stopped. She’s giggling again, her hands clapping, as she watches the butterfly fly away from Astoria’s palm. 

Rose thinks about what her mother said when Astoria had just been born.

_This is why we fought. This is why we fight._

 


	27. Murky

_4 years later_

“Rose? Rose? Are you awake?” 

Rose grunted in response, shifting the duvet away from Scorpius and closer to her own chilly, bare skin. Hearing the rain outside, she thinks that Ava has come in to wake them up again. She had stormed in earlier, jumped on their bed, and cried about the rain upsetting her hair tomorrow. 

“Rose?”

“Mmm,” Rose mumbled back in response, though her eyes remained tightly shut.

“Rose, my Granddad is dead. Lucius is dead.”

Scorpius’s words effortlessly snapped Rose’s eyes open. She turned around quickly, grabbing her wand, and casting _Lumos_. She studied Scorpius’s face carefully — trying to assess how he was feeling, what’s running through his mind, before she spoke. His face is unreadable, a carefully mastered blankness. 

“What? When?” 

“Hours ago,” Scorpius replied. “Here.” He passed her a letter, written on expensive, delicate cream paper, that Rose immediately recognised as from her father-in-law.

_Scorpius,_

_Your grandfather, my father, died several hours ago. He had unknowingly obtained a cursed object and it quickly killed him. Your grandmother is distraught, naturally. I have already been to their house to see her. Scorpius, I would appreciate if you could come back with me this morning. I need you by my side._

_Would Ron or his mother or father be able to look after Astoria, Ava, Aurora, and Alexandra in my absence? Please send my apologies to Alexandra that we won’t be able to finish her book today._

_Dad._

Rose reads over the letter several times; so much swirls around in her mind. A cursed object? How ironic — Lucius going the way he lived: attracted to things that were bad for him and, in consequence, for his family. Narcissa? Isn’t this the first time that Draco has visited his mother since he cut his parents out of his life following Astoria’s death? 

“I’ll leave now,” Scorpius said from beside her, dragging Rose out of her thoughts. She looked up at him; he’s nervously fidgeting with his pyjamas and smoothing down the sides of his hair. “Dad won’t be sleeping. I know he won’t be."

Rose nodded. “My Dad can take the day off to look after the girls. I’ll contact the Ministry and ask for the day off, too. I’ll meet you and your dad there.”

Scorpius shook his head. “No. I don’t want your day and work disrupted because he’s dead.”

“Scorpius…” Rose said, stopping herself from rolling her eyes at him. “You’re looking far too much into this. I’m not disrupting my day because an ex-Death Eater and faithful pure blood supremacist is dead. I’m doing it to support you. Since — since I know how _murky_ these things can get.”

Scorpius shook his head again, a defiant look in his eyes. He gave her a weak grin. “No. We’re the _Maljoys._ The completely and utterly murky-less Maljoys. Go to work. Tell our girls that my dad has the flu. I don’t want them caught up in the murky-ness.”

Rose had to tightly fold her hands to distract herself from the frustration building in the pit of her stomach. The situation had quickly annoyed and stressed her; she’s not angry at Scorpius, of course, but Lucius. Lucius and his poor decisions and his poor ideology and the murky-ness that he constantly caused her husband and father-in-law. She would, of course, never utter those words to Draco: Draco was, perhaps, the most aware of all of them. Vocality would do little to help.

“Right, fine,” Rose finally said. “But if you need me, Scorpius, owl me immediately. The Ministry won’t mind giving me a day off; I’ve never been off ill since I had Alexandra. I _want_ to be there for you.”

Scorpius smiled and leaned in to kiss her. It’s a tender kiss; one that tries to take strength from how she felt against him. “I will.”

Scorpius gave Rose one last, lingering kiss on her forehead before he got up to go to the bathroom. Once she listened to him floo away, Rose tried, in vain, to get back to sleep. Thoughts of trying to tell her daughters about why they’ve never met their dead great-grandfather filled her mind, as did thoughts of telling them why their grandfather was estranged from his parents; and, most pressingly, thoughts of telling them about their murky paternal family past.

* * *

At work, the photo of Rose’s family that sits on her desk becomes more visible than usual. She can’t keep her eyes off of her four, beaming and laughing children all day. Rose knows that, whatever Scorpius may have thought at four o’clock that morning, she cannot lie to them that their granddad simply had the flu today.

“Rose?” 

Rose snapped her head up from the photo in-front of her. Her mother stands at the door, her head peaking in. Rose raises immediately, walking towards her; she feels calmed by her presence. 

“Mum,” Rose said, pulling her into a tight hug. “Is everything alright? Scorpius sent me a letter earlier. He’s doing fine.”

Hermione replied with a smile of fond amusement. 

“What?” 

“It’s five o’clock.”

“Oh,” Rose said, blinking and turning to the clock on her left. “Oh. I lost track of time… I was…”

“Distracted?”

Rose nods. Hermione frowns and hugs her daughter again, soothingly rubbing her back. “Do you remember,” Hermione murmured. “When you were seven and heard me having a nightmare?”

The clear memory of her mother’s screams and tears flood back to Rose and she cringes in her mother’s arms.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” Hermione replied, her voice soft. “And do you remember what I told you, when you found me?”

“Well, not word for word —”

“I wouldn’t expect you to, Rose.”

“Well — you told me about the war. The truth about the war for the first time. Not all of it — but I remember, it became clearer. And — and you told me that it was ok, because things are better now. That you had a job that would make a difference and opportunities that could only have been won through the war.”

“You know what to tell them, then.”

Rose pulled away and looked at Hermione, confused. “The girls?”

Hermione nods. “You tell them the soft truth. At this age, at least. And then you give them hope. Children, I’ve found, like it that way.”

Rose stares at her mother for several, silent moments before composing herself. “You’re right, Mum,” She pauses and grins. “As usual, of course. They’ll be alright, with the truth, do you think?”

“Of course they will. They’re your daughters after all, Rose.”

* * *

Astoria, Ava, Aurora and Alexandra did not mention their grandfather’s absence when Rose collected them from her parent’s house. Rose was thankful for her father’s jokes and tricks throughout dinner, thoroughly distracting them and allowing for Rose to mull over what she would say to them when the inevitable came.

They stayed content and occupied when Rose took them back home. They asked where their dad was; Rose lied that his research was running late. She could see a glimmer of anxiousness in Astoria’s eye and realised that, perhaps, she feared her grandfather was sicker than what Rose had said.

Astoria only gathered the bravery to pry her mum with questions when all five of them where on-top of Rose and Scorpius’s bed, hours later. Aurora and Alexandra had just been bathed and Rose was carefully plaiting Aurora’s hair. She preferred to do it with her hands, when she had time; a wand felt rather impersonal, a belief that Hermione had also held.

“Mum,” Astoria began, her voice heavy. “Is Granddad going to be ok?”

“Of course he is, ‘Stori! He’s just got the sniffles,” Aurora interjected. “Right, Mummy?”

Rose dismantled her hands from Aurora’s hair and paused. Four sets of eyes were now on her, anxiety now glimmering in them all.

“Right, Mummy?”

“Granddad didn’t have the flu,” Rose began, slowly. “Granddad’s dad died last night.”

Alexandra gasped and sprung her arms around Rose. She began to wail out and cry against her mother’s chest. “Alexandra!” Rose said, shocked. “It’s alright! Granddad is doing fine! Don’t cry!”

She looked up at the other three girls who gazed back with faces of confusion. Rose doubted that they had ever heard of Lucius before tonight.

“Granddad had a daddy?” Aurora asked, puzzled.

“Course he did, ‘Rora!” Ava replied, rolling her eyes. “Why is 'Zandra crying, Mum? We didn’t know him, did we?”

“Well, Alexandra is… the youngest,” Rose said. “And… death is quite a sad thing.”

“Are you sad, Mummy?” Aurora asked.

“I’m sad for your Granddad, yes,” Rose said carefully.

“Why haven’t we ever met him?” Ava asked.

Rose Granger-Weasley had lived her life being prepared; parenthood was no exception.

“Well, long before you were born, Granddad and his Dad had a little fight,” Rose said. “They didn’t talk much after that.”

Apart from a sobbing Alexandra, the three girls began a prolonged silence, taking in what they had heard.

“Mummy, why did they fall out?” Aurora said, finally.

“Your Granddad’s dad had some…. _naughty_ beliefs that Granddad disagreed with,” Rose said. “And sometimes _naughty_ beliefs can lead to fights that are never resolved.” She looked at Astoria, who, in preparation for Hogwarts, had recently been told about the war and blood purity, and nodded. Astoria gave a small, nervous smile of understanding back.

“That’s sad,” Aurora said, frowning. “That won’t ever happen with Daddy and Granddad or you and Grandpa, will it?”

“Of course not!” Rose said quickly. “Of course not. You’ll always have a Granddad or Grandpa to read you a story or play with his jokes with you!”

Aurora nodded, her face showing that she was satisfied with what her Mum had to say. “Alright,” she said, finally. “Can you read ‘Zandra and me the rest of the story from last night now? ‘Stori, Ava, go get your books to read along!”

Rose blinked, unbelieving. “Don’t you…” She swallowed. “If you have any more questions, you can ask them, you know.” She glanced over at Ava and Aurora but saw that both girls were content.

“Nope,” Ava replied, popping the ‘p’. “I’ll go and get our books, ‘Stori!”

 

* * *

The thought of Mummies and Daddies dying forced Alexandra to ask to sleep with her parents that night. Rose obliged, unable to deny her daughter any comfort that she needed.

The scene earlier, when they had all been on her bed, played over in Rose’s mind as she waited for Scorpius to return home. Her daughters, despite the initial shock, had handled their Great-Grandfather’s death and ‘naughty’ beliefs so… _well._

Not even well — with an ease that Rose had thought wasn’t possible.

She didn’t understand it — after what she had been through, what Albus had been through, what Scorpius had been through… for them to be so understanding… _had the impact of the Wars eased with this new generation?_

The sound of Scorpius arriving in his study next door forced Rose out of her thoughts. She got up quickly, grabbing her wand, and tucking Alexandra back in. Once Scorpius had entered, Rose brought a finger to her lips before performing a silencing charm around Alexandra.

“She couldn’t sleep — I don’t think she likes the concept of someone’s Daddy dying,” Rose said softly.

“You told them?”

“They needed to know.”

Scorpius nodded. “That was the right thing to do,” he said. 

“How’s your Dad doing?”

“As well as he can be,” Scorpius replied. “It’s quite a difficult thing: when you grew up loving and idolising someone and then, that person, putting you in danger… but not meaning to. How does he deal with that? Now that he’s dead? After everything?” Scorpius shakes his head as Rose wraps her arms around his waist. “I couldn’t imagine, if that was my Dad.”

“Neither,” Rose said. “But he’ll get through it.”

Scorpius nodded. “I saw my Grandmother.” Rose tries to hid the grimace on her face. She fails, miserably. “She asked me how I’m enjoying being a parent.”

“To four dirty blooded children?”

“She wasn’t unpleasant. That’s something, at least,” Scorpius replied, yawning. “Let’s go to bed — I am exhausted.”

Scorpius changed and met Rose in bed. Alexandra lays between them, sleeping peacefully and having dreams that are not about Daddies dying. 

“You never got the chance to tell me about your new law,” Scorpius said. “You told me last night, that you were going to today.”

“Oh!” Rose exclaimed. “That. It’s reforming the justice system. It’s going to be… _a lot_. But it’s going to do a tremendous amount of good.”

Rose is interrupted by Alexandra rustling between them, her eyes fluttering open and meeting her father’s.

“Daddy?”

“Hey ‘Zandra,” Scorpius whispered, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “Granddad said that he’ll finish your story when he sees you next week.”

“Is he ok, Daddy?”

“Yes, don’t worry, ‘Zandra. And I’ll always be here to make you giggle with my puns.”

“Don’t worry, Daddy. Mummy made it all better.” Satisfied, Alexandra nestled into her father’s chest and shut her eyes again.

In silence, Rose and Scorpius watched her fall back asleep. She radiated a juvenile peacefulness, despite what she found out today. Nothing could make Rose and Scorpius feel more at peace.

“Thank you,” Scorpius said, finally.

“For what? Watching over them today?”

“No. For making my world — and our world — less murky.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have a nice Christmas and New Year :)


	28. New Beginnings (Part 1)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had planned for this to be the last chapter, but it ended up becoming a little too long. I've split it into two parts and hopefully I'll have the second part done by the end of this week :)

 

Rose had never quite grown to tolerate the endless ‘mini-me’, ‘she’s so like you!’, comments that came with raising children. Rose knew that the comments were harmless; words of appreciation for both mother and daughter. But she was Hermione and Ron’s daughter and, being their daughter, such words created an uncomfortable anxiety from Rose towards how her daughters would respond.

Still, Rose was unable to deny the blaring traits that her daughters had inherited from her and Scorpius. Ava, it became increasingly clear as she grew, had been given her mother’s talent for debate, both in and out of work.

“Reason number twenty-three why I should be allowed to go tomorrow,” Ava began, reading from her little golden, jewelled notebook that Draco had gifted her. She lay in her bed, cozied in by the covers, as Rose sat by the edge and watched. “I could be orphaned.”

“ _Ava_.”

“Mum, please let me finish! I could be orphaned and made to make my own way to the Platform. And do you know what will happen, Mum?” 

“You will not be orphaned.”

Ava ignored her. “I won’t know my way there! Because you and Dad never took me tomorrow to see ‘Stori off. I will miss the train and be forced to live life as a lonely Muggle forever!”

“You will not be orphaned,” Rose repeated, though she held back a smile of amusement.

“Fine!” Ava cleared her throat. “How about reason number twenty-four….”

Rose sighed and leaned in to close the notebook. “Ava, I understand how much you want to go…”

“Uncle Al got to go when Uncle Jamie did! So did Uncle Hugo when you did!”

“Yes but, Ava, you need to understand that your sister is feeling quite… _jittery_ … about going. If we take you, then Aurora and Alexandra will want to go too. And Astoria want its to be quite intimate, to help with her nerves. She only wants her Mum and Dad —  treat it as if you’re making a difficult sacrifice for your big sister.”

Ava considered her mother’s words. She sighed and tossed the notebook onto the carpet. “Alright then, Mum. For ‘Stori,” she said. “I’m going to miss her lots.”

Rose leaned in to kiss Ava’s forehead. “I know, Ava,” Rose replied. “We’re all going to miss her too. But she’ll write and be home at Christmas. Try and sleep. We’re all up early tomorrow. I love you.”

“Love you too, Mum.”

Satisfied that her daughter would sleep content, Rose turned the light off and left her room. She only had one more of her daughters to say goodnight to now — Astoria. The last time that she would be able to until Christmas. The thought made her stomach turn and fall with a dreadful sadness. Rose hadn’t quite realised how difficult it would be saying goodbye to her eldest; her mother and father had said goodbye to her with such ease, as had Ginny and Harry to Albus. But it was, from what they had told her, there. It was inevitable.

Rose walked down their hallway, her palms sweaty and tears forming in her eyes. _Stop it_ , she snapped to herself. _Astoria doesn’t want to see you upset._

She could hear Scorpius and Astoria talking as she reached her bedroom, anxiety in every part of Astoria’s voice. “But I heard what Uncle Al said, Dad. He was sorted into Slytherin and everyone was awful to him! He stopped being friends with Mum and Uncle Jamie teased him.”

Rose’s hand snapped across her mouth, the shock of what she had just heard filling through her with a vicious coldness.

“It was more complicated than that, ‘Storia. Your Uncle Al had… that night, he was preoccupied with Auntie Milly and their baby. He’s worried for him when he arrives, as we worried for you. It had nothing to do with how we’ll react to what house you’re sorted into. We couldn’t care less, ‘Storia.”

“But if Mum and Uncle Al didn’t talk after he was sorted and if Uncle Al and Uncle Harry started arguing, then isn’t there a chance that Mum and I will be the same?” Astoria asked sadly.

“Absolutely not, ‘Storia!” Scorpius exclaimed. “You could be sorted into your own, new house and call it the ‘Anti-Bathilda Bagshot-ians’ and I would still be the proudest parent out of all of your classmates. Your Mum and I do not care.”

“I don’t believe you,” Astoria said, quietly. “It’s such a big thing, isn’t it? I… I feel like, if I’m Slytherin or Gryffindor, it’s going to be as if I’ve chosen a side. No one will say it, of course, but everyone will think that. I’m more… I’m more of the Gryffindor side than the Slytherin side of my family, Dad…”

“Rubbish! Your Uncle Al was in Slytherin… Your Grandad’s Mum’s cousin was in Gryffindor…”

Rose was unable to hear any more. She lunged into her room, feeling weightless, and sat on the floor against her bed. 

_Astoria wasn’t meant to hear that conversation!_

Albus had came last week to their house, upset and anxious about the upcoming birth of his son. A son, like Rose and Scorpius’s daughters, who would face the same heavy weight of their family legacies. 

Albus had mulled over his past, tormented by the idea that his son would inevitably face the same; Rose and Scorpius had tried, desperately, to comfort him that night. But Albus (“ever the master of angst”, Rose had commented to him at the time) would not give in easily — his sorting at Hogwarts had been discussed extensively between the three, as had the consequences. 

_Such a conversation would have been toxic to Astoria!_ She was a poor sleeper, especially recently with the normal Hogwarts anxieties about making friends, being away from home… _no wonder she’s been feeling anxious!_

Rose looked up at the pictures of her smiling daughters that sat on her and Scorpius’s grand, wooden drawers and guilt slammed into her chest. She had always prided herself in being the best mother that she could be. She’d always read and revised the parent guides for every newborn, always stuck to a strict routine, read to them every night from the womb… _and, yet, here I have failed on such a damaging scale…_

“Rose?”

Rose’s eyes quickly flicked away from the drawer. Scorpius’s face was a comfort; she stood and made her way over to him, taking him in her arms. 

“Rose? What’s wrong?”

Rose shut her eyes and nuzzled her chin against him. “I was — I was feeling warm,” she lied.

“I’m going to miss her too,” Scorpius said quietly. “But she’ll be absolutely fine, I am certain of it. Whizzing about during lessons on the Hogwarts grounds! And she’ll be a fine flyer at that, our ‘Storia! Learning how to do her spells, making friends — which, despite her worries, we _all_ know she will, cheering on her house at Quidditch!” Rose bit down on her trembling lip. “And — most importantly of all, she can finally use all of the History of Magic knowledge that I’ve read to the girls throughout the years!” 

Rose continued to bite down; a desperate distraction against the tears which begged to fall. At her silence, Scorpius pulled away and frowned at her glaring sadness. “I’ll miss her too, Rose,” he repeated again. He kissed her gently with his hands placed on either side of her face. “But we’ll cope with missing her, I promise.”

Rose nodded. She forced a smile onto her face and wiped away the stray tears that had fallen. “You’re right,” she said, weakly. “I’ll go and say goodnight to her.”

Rose detached herself from her husband and turned quickly, unwilling for the conversation to continue. She made her way to Astoria’s room slowly and paused at the door. Rose inhaled.

“Astoria? Can I come in and say goodnight?” Rose peaked the door open. Her stomach twisted with a painful love for her daughter when she saw her laying in bed, clearly anxious, and fiddling with Albus’s worn comfort blanket on top of her. Scorpius must have given it to her when he left.

“Hi, Mum,” Astoria said, a sad smile on her face. _Perhaps she thinks this is our last night with a decent relationship_. The thought crept so quickly into Rose’s mind that it shocked her, refilling her eyes with tears again. “Don’t be sad, I’ll be back in December.” She held her arms open.

Rose almost jumped over to her bed. She pulled Astoria against her chest, stroking her hair and kissing the top of her head with a devoted urgency. “I’m going to miss you so much,” Rose said. “But — but you’ll be ok, I know it.”

“Mum, I know that you were listening in to Dad and I’s conversation. I heard your footsteps and saw your shadow on the wall since the door was left open slightly. I — I — I’m sorry that I listened to you and Uncle Al and Dad …

“Don’t be. I don’t blame you for not going back to your room, after what you had heard.” Rose paused, unsure of what to say next. “It’s funny, really. I overheard Grandpa and Grandma talking about Dad, just before I went to Hogwarts. You do know how your Grandpa and Granddad never really got on well… Grandpa wasn’t being very pleasant about your Dad. I believed some things about him when I shouldn’t have — all because I listened into one conversation…”

“I meant what I said, Mum,” Astoria said, her lip now trembling.

“Oh, Astoria, please don’t cry,” Rose said, though she too wanted to do the same. “None of us — your Dad, your Grandpa, your Grandma, your Grandad, Nana and Papa Weasley, Uncle Al and I — none of us will take your sorting like any sort of rejection! Please, please, don’t worry, my love. Please.”

Mother and Daughter lay in silence as Rose gently wiped the tears from Astoria’s face. Rose wondered if she had ever felt a stronger emotional and physical pain; it was an unbearable ache inside of her, the knowledge that her daughter was hurting in such a deep way. 

“But everyone else will,” Astoria sniffed. “Auntie Ginny and Uncle Harry didn’t mind! But everyone else did. All of the other people in my year will think I’ve chosen a family! I — I will think that I — I don’t want to — I…”

“Shh,” Rose calmed Astoria, who was now edging into hysterics. “They won’t, Astoria.”

“You don’t know that, Mum,” Astoria replied. “Dad said that he’d give up Pepper Imps if they did, but he still doesn’t know.”

“Astoria, you’re being silly,” Rose said. “You know your Dad wouldn’t say something as serious like that if he didn’t believe it.”

Though her tears had dried, Astoria did not laugh. “Mum,” she finally said. “Can you leave now? I want to sleep so I’m not tired tomorrow.”

It was the last thing that Rose wanted to do but, unable to deny her daughter what she wanted and needed, Rose nodded. “Ok. But if you need your Dad or I, come in immediately. You may be a big Hogwarts girl now, but you’re never too old for a cuddle off of us.”

Astoria’s smile in response was forced. “I will, Mum. Goodnight, I love you.”

“I love you too, Astoria. More than you will ever know,” Rose said softly, getting up and turning off her light. She gave Astoria one last, painful kiss on her forehead.

* * *

Rose knew that she would be unable to hide her pain from Scorpius. More than that, Rose did not want to: she wanted to be comforted by her husband and to be vulnerable and open to him. So she told him about her and Astoria’s conversation as he wrapped his arms around her, his partnership providing her with strength.

“Astoria will be fine, Rose,” Scorpius said after she had finished. “I am completely and utterly certain of it. I wouldn’t risk giving up Pepper Imps for nothing, would I?”

“Children can be cruel, Scorpius,” Rose replied, flatly. “And what about Astoria herself? If she still believes that she’s — that she’s chosen a side… and we can’t convince her!”

Scorpius sighed. “Our places have completely switched, haven’t they? I was the wreck when Astoria was born; you were the calm one, with your endless books and perfectly kept routines. But I learned that worrying over our daughters will do little, Rose.”

“I know that! We — we — we need to _do_ something then, Scorpius! But we can’t get through to her! We need a plan!”

“Rose, there is nothing that we can do. I know that your entire career is based off solving problems and issues and the thorns in our society but this — this is different,” Scorpius said. “We’ve told her that none of us care — we can’t solve it, we can only be there for her. And, if she needs us, you know Astoria will be at our door.”

“Rubbish! We can’t just _leave_ her when she’s _so_ worried!”

“She was practically falling asleep when I spoke to her earlier! She wants to rest. We can talk to her again in the morning and keep comforting her until she boards that train.”

“That is horrific. Utterly horrific. I’m going back to her room to do _something_ …”

Scorpius grabbed onto Rose’s hand, preventing her from leaving. “Rose, no. She’ll be sleeping! We will be there for her — tomorrow. Both of us. But there is little that we can do now — if she’s unhappy with her sorting, if people say _anything_ about it, we can deal with that problem when it comes.” Scorpius paused. “But she’s an eleven year old child, you know."

“I am quite aware of that, Scorpius.”

“The issue with the Sorting isn’t the houses or their reputations or generations of families being sorted into the same one. It’s that it is eleven year olds being subjected to it. It’s a terrible idea, really. Brings out all sorts of juvenile fears —”

Scorpius stopped at the sound of a door opening and shutting in the distance, followed by the pattering of feet coming down the hallway and stopping at their bedroom door. “Ava,” Scorpius and Rose said in unison. 

Ava creaked the door open and peaked her head through. When she saw her Mother and Father laying with their lights on, she quickly pushed it open and rushed over to their bed. “Mum! Dad!” She exclaimed, jumping on top of them. “I’ve come up with a compromise!”

“Shh, Ava!” Rose scolded as Ava nestled between them. “You should be sleeping! You need to be up early tomorrow!”

“Fine!” Ava said, her voice now a whisper. “I’ve come up with a compromise!”

“What would we do without you and your compromises, lovely Ava?” Scorpius said. “Very well then, what is it?”

“You and Mum take me alone to pick up ‘Stori this Christmas! So I can see the platform and the train without ‘Rora and ‘Zandra!”

“That isn’t very nice to your sisters, is it?” Rose said.

“Well, they can do the same once I’ve went! Oh — please, Mum, please Dad! I’m so _desperate_ to go!”

Scorpius looked over at Rose. “What do you say, Rose? Do you think it’s a solid compromise, with your legal expertise?”

“Oh — wait, Mum! One last thing. Can you take me to Sugarplums before it? Pretty please?”

“Will you let Aurora and Alexandra play with you now that Astoria is away?” Rose replied.

“Of course!” Ava paused and frowned. “But only if they be careful with the games Grandpa got me for Christmas! Honestly, Mum, ‘Rora is too young for them and she’s going to break them!”

“She’s only two years younger than you!” Rose replied. “But you’ve got yourself a successful compromise, Ava.”

“Oh, really, Mum?! Really?! Thank you!” Ava threw her arms around Rose and kissed her cheek before doing the same to Scorpius. “I can’t wait! It’s going to be such a good day! Mum, can I get a new dress for it? Wait, never-mind! I’ll wear the green one Granddad bought me! It’s very pretty, isn’t it?”

“Absolutely,” Scorpius said. “Now — as your Mum said, we all need to be up early tomorrow. Go and sleep now, Ava. Do you want me to come and tuck you in?”

“Merlin, Dad! I’m _nine_! I’m not a baby!” Ava exclaimed. “But — oh — there’s one more thing. ‘Stori has been quite worried about Hogwarts recently, hasn’t she?”

Rose gripped onto Scorpius’s hand underneath their covers. “Has she said anything to you?” Rose asked.

“Oh — nothing really,” Ava said casually, her voice light. “She just doesn’t seem very excited, doesn’t she? Will she be alright, Mum? What if she hates it and has no friends and can’t get her wand to work and forgets all of the times we flew with you and Dad in the garden and everyone laughs at her because she crashed and what if she ends up with broken limbs? Oh, Mum! That would be awful!”

“Your sister will be fine,” Scorpius said. Rose, unable to respond due to the large lump now in her throat again and from the fear of her voice shaking, mouthed ‘thank you’ to him. “But she won’t be if we all sleep in and she misses the train. Let’s get you back to bed, shall we?”

“Oh, you’re right, Dad!” Ava said. “But — again, I’m _nine_! Night Mum, night Dad.” Ava gave both of her parents another kiss before gracefully bouncing off of the bed and excitedly leaving their room, satisfied with the deal she had struck.

Scorpius edged towards Rose again and wrapped his arms around her. “We should sleep now too, Rose.    ‘Storia won’t appreciate if I’m tired and teary tomorrow in-front of all of her new class-mates.”

“I doubt sleep will calm me in the slightest tomorrow,” Rose retorted, though she snuggled in against Scorpius and allowed him to turn off the lights.

Rose slept little that night. She had imagined the morning of Astoria’s September 1st before. The excitement for her daughter and the journey she was about to embark on… the endless possibilities now in-front of her, that had to have been fought for and won… 

And, yet, when Rose was awakened by the sound of Ava excitedly bellowing down the hallway to Astoria, she only felt dread.


	29. New Beginnings (Part 2)

 Breakfast was, despite Scorpius’s best effort, a subdued affair that morning.

He was the first of the six of them to wake up; he had wanted to prepare pancakes to brighten the house’s mood. Alexandra had climbed in with Rose and Scorpius during the night, too distraught by the prospect of saying goodbye to her sister to sleep. She too failed to muster any enthusiasm when Scorpius came back into their room to announce that breakfast was served. Alexandra promptly burst into tears and cuddled against her mother’s chest as Scorpius watched from the door, his face falling.

Ava was his last hope against the family’s sadness: at breakfast, while they waited for Rose to finish getting ready, she eagerly asked question after question to Astoria and Scorpius about Hogwarts. 

“What will happen if ‘Storia fails her exams, Dad? Does she get expelled?” 

“Ava, that’s not very helpful!” Aurora said. “Don’t worry, ‘Stori, of course you’ll pass them all! You read too much to fail.” Aurora grinned at her sister and Astoria gave a weak smile in return.

“Aurora is right — but if you _do_ happen to fail, you just need to re-sit a year,” Scorpius replied. He looked over at Astoria and saw her dragging her fork across her pancakes, her usually smiling face now etched over with misery. “Are you not hungry, ‘Storia? Do you want more raspberries?”

Astoria looked up and forced another smile. “I’m ok, Dad. Just a bit too nervous to eat.”

Scorpius nodded and walked behind her seat. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder. Astoria looked up and relaxed. “Never-mind. I ate so many Pepper Imps before I went that I was nearly sick on the Platform! There will be things from the trolley to eat if you get hungry later.”

“Dad,” Ava piped up. “Now that ‘Stori is _finally_ going to Hogwarts, can you _finally_ tell us whether or not it’s true that you and Uncle Al —”

Ava was — to Scorpius’s relief — interrupted by the sound of Rose walking down the stairs and into the kitchen. Alexandra sprung up and rushed over to fling her arms around her mother’s waist. Rose looked down and, despite her low mood, gave a genuine smiled. “Oh Alexandra,” she said softly. “Will we get rid of your bed altogether while Astoria is away?”

“I’ll write all the time, ‘Zandra. I promise,” Astoria said from the table.

Rose looked up at Astoria and the sight of her daughter, beautiful and yet so clearly anxious, made both her lips smile and her eyes water. Her ringlets had been carefully pinned away from her face with two, large white hair clips.

“Didn’t we lay out your new red dress for you to wear?” Rose asked, motioning to the lilac dress that Astoria was wearing. She was unable to rid her voice of the hints of sadness within it. Rose and Astoria had picked the red dress during their last day out together before Astoria left, two weeks ago. Rose wondered if Astoria’s rejection was intentional.

“It was _red_ , Mum,” Astoria said. “I… I can’t choose a side like that.”

“Oh, Astoria, I —” Rose began, her face now red. But she was quickly interrupted by the sound of Astoria bursting into tears and hiding her face in her hands. Alexandra quickly detached herself from Rose and ran over to comfort her sister, as did Ava and Aurora. Scorpius, still standing behind her, soothingly rubbed her back.

“No one would have thought that, ‘Storia,” Scorpius said quickly. He looked over at Rose and held his hand out; Rose took it and he raised hers, placing a comforting kiss onto it. “But it doesn’t matter — the lilac dress looks wonderful anyway.”

Though her lips still trembled, Astoria forced her head up and nodded at her father. Scorpius looked at the nearly finished plates on the table and, to Rose’s relief, clapped his hands together. “Everyone finished? Coats on to go to Nana and Papa’s! Hurry, hurry.” 

The girls promptly hurried from the kitchen to their bedrooms upstairs. Scorpius turned to Rose and held her in his arms in silence. “Don’t worry, Rose,” he finally said. “This will all be over tomorrow morning when she doesn’t give a Dumbledore what house she’s in, I promise.” Rose, however, struggled to believe him.

* * *

The Burrow did little to lift Rose’s spirits. It represented warmth, home, and family — a painful reminder of what she struggled against with Astoria’s anxiety. 

Still, the sight and sounds of her Nana and Papa helping Alexandra make cupcakes did calm her. Even if Astoria struggled to accept her sorting, Rose knew that her daughter would always have a strong, loving family behind her.  She watched, eyes full of love, as Scorpius lifted Alexandra up so that she could have a better look at the ingredients on the kitchen counter, talking and laughing with Mr and Mrs Weasley as he did so. No one would have been able to look at the sight and conclude that Mr Weasley and Scorpius’s Grandfather had once used to engage in public brawls.

“Where’s Astoria?” said a voice suddenly from behind her. Rose jumped and spun around, coming face-to-face with a smiling Albus. “I’ve just arrived.”

“Uncle Al!” Ava exclaimed when she caught sight of him from the living room. She ran over and flung her arms around him, Aurora trailing behind with a bored expression on her face. “Will the baby be here soon?”

“I told you, Ava, you’ll be the first to know when he arrives,” Albus replied. 

‘The _very_ first?” Ava repeated. Albus nodded and she beamed. “Oh, I can’t wait!”

“Where’s Astoria?” Albus asked Rose again. He noticed her tense at his question and put a hand on her shoulder. “Is everything fine? You’re not grieving her already, are you?”

Rose shook her head and forced her body to compose itself. She would not, she had told herself earlier, make today any worse through extreme public displays of mourning. “She’s upstairs,” Rose said. “Triple checking that she has everything — you know what she’s like.”

“She’s sulking, Mum,” Ava said quickly. “I went up to see her and to ask if she wanted to play a game of Exploding Snap — the last before she left, Uncle Al! It’s our favourite game — but she said no.”

“Sulking?” Albus said, raising his eyebrows at Rose. “Why would she be sulking?”

“She’s not sulking —” 

“Because she overheard Mum and Dad and you talking about when you went to Hogwarts, Uncle Al. And you got sorted into Slytherin — which I think is perfectly alright, of course. But I would hope to be in Gryffindor because I _hate_ green, _despise_ blue, and yellow makes me nauseous,” Ava said breathlessly. “No offence. Yes, well, ‘Stori heard all of this and cried because she’s now worried that she’s choosing a family side, you see. And that all of the other houses will bully her, like you were!”

“Ava!” Rose gasped.

Scorpius, upon distantly hearing his daughter’s longwinded explanation, came in from the kitchen. “Albus!” He firstly said, pulling his best friend into a tight hug. “What’s the commotion about? Trying to disturb our cupcake making, Ava?”

“Of course not, Dad! As if you could ever beat Mum and mine’s!” Ava replied and beamed up at Rose. “I was telling Uncle Al and Mum about…”

“About everything,” Rose interrupted, her voice quiet. 

Scorpius understood. “Ah,” he said. “Did ‘Storia tell you, Ava?”

“Yes,” Ava said. “I asked her why she burst into tears at breakfast and she told me. I think she’s being dramatic, really. I’m… I’m going to miss her too… but you don’t see me… bursting into…. tears…”

And, with that, Ava burst into tears and let out a loud, strangled whine. 

“Ava!” Scorpius and Rose said together as Ava flung her little arms around them both. 

“Ava, oh dear, come here,” Scorpius soothed. “Do you want to come and make cupcakes with Nana and Papa?”

Her face still hidden against the sides of her mother and father’s chests, Ava nodded in response.

“I’ll go with her and calm her down,” Scorpius said to Rose. “You’ll be ok, won’t you?” 

He turned to Albus. “Everything is fine, honestly, Albus,” he said over Ava’s wails. “Astoria is just a little nervous.” 

As Ava began to drag her father away into the kitchen, Scorpius leaned in to give Rose a comforting kiss. “Remember what I said,” he said quietly. “By tomorrow morning…”

“I’m not sure I believe you,” Rose responded when Scorpius was out of sight. She turned to Albus and sighed. “I can’t really add much to what Ava said, Albus. Astoria is _terrified_.”

Albus considered his cousin’s words for several moments. “She’ll be fine,” he said at last. “And that’s coming from me — the boy who would have happily burned down Hogwarts for four of the years that I was there.”

“Children are cruel,” Rose replied, flatly.

“Are you really telling me that, Rose? Do you not think that I, of all people, am aware of that?”

“Don’t be smart,” Rose snapped back. “I don’t care about what happened to you right now, Albus. All I care about is Astoria and her wellbeing in that stupid castle.”

“She will be fine, Rose,” Albus reiterated. 

Though Rose opened her mouth to reply, she was interrupted by the sound of Astoria at the top of the staircase.  “Mum? Uncle Al?” Astoria said as she made her way down them. “What’s going on?”

“I’ve just come to say goodbye,” Albus said and he pulled his Goddaughter into a hug. “Since I couldn’t last night. Everything all packed?”

Astoria nodded. “The sweets and books Dad’s given me take up half of my trunks.” 

Albus laughed. “Well,” he said. “It didn’t do him any harm when he went, did it? Are you excited?”

“Albus,” Rose hissed under her breath. She put a firm hand on his shoulder. Albus shrugged it off.

“I’m…” Astoria began, fiddling with her fingers. She finally sighed. “No, not really.”

Albus placed two comforting hands on her shoulders. “You’ll be fine, ‘Storia,” he said. “I… I didn’t much like Hogwarts at first. I struggled with the lessons and the flying. You won’t.”

Astoria considered his words. “Auntie Ginny was a Quidditch player, wasn’t she?”

Albus gave her a small smile. “Your attention to detail, ‘Storia, is why I know you’ll be a brilliant witch. Yes, she was, but it didn’t mean that I didn’t find it difficult. You’re an excellent flyer, I’ve heard.”

Rose nodded eagerly. “Not as intense as me, but more graceful than your Dad. The perfect combination.”

To Rose’s surprise, Astoria looked up at her and smiled. 

Astoria soon turned back to her Godfather and frowned. “What if I don’t make any friends? What if everyone is mean to me? Or — or not everyone, but the other… the other house I wasn’t sorted into?” 

“There’s not only two houses, Astoria,” Rose said quickly. “I… to tell you the truth, a part of me at your age always wondered if Ravenclaw would be quite fun too.”

“Ravenclaw? Boring geeks,” Albus replied. He grinned at Astoria and she grinned back. “No offence to your Dad, the honorary one, of course. But they won’t, Astoria. Things have changed.”

Astoria, however, and her little, eleven-year old mind, continued to fret. “I’ve always found it difficult to make friends — that aren’t my sisters, of course.” 

“All you need is one friend, Astoria,” Albus said, looking into the kitchen at Scorpius. “One friend. That’s all you need to be ok. And anyone would be lucky to be your friend — you’re kind, vivacious, good fun…”

“And caring,” Rose said softly. “I — I remember your first piece of accidental magic. You were two and it was Ava’s Christening. She… do you remember it, Albus? She threw up milk all over herself and her white dress at the Church. And you, Astoria, cleaned it away with magic. We’re all lucky to have a witch like you in the family. And anyone would be lucky to be your friend at Hogwarts.”

Something seemed to flicker and pass in Astoria’s eyes; her whole posture relaxed and, in silence, she wrapped her arms around her mother. Rose caressed her back gently, memorising how she felt in the little time that they had left together. 

Finally, Astoria tore herself away and Rose let go. She turned to her Godfather and gave him a hug, whispering “thank you” to him and that she would miss him. 

“Rose, ‘Storia,” Scorpius then called from the kitchen. “I think we better get ready to leave.”

“I better go and say goodbye to Nana and Papa and Ava, ‘Rora and ‘Zandra,” said Astoria, sadly.

“I’ll be right here,” Rose replied. 

Once Astoria had left for the kitchen, Rose turned to Albus and smiled. “Thank you,” she said. “You’re going to be a wonderful father in a few months time.”

“Only because I’ve had so many good parents to base myself on,” Albus replied. “You and Scorpius included.”

* * *

“I think that Astoria is the first with Malfoy blood in them to not look bewildered or disgusted during their first trip to Kings Cross. I was the first to not be disgusted, at least,” Scorpius said, as he and Rose walked through the station and to the Platform. Astoria walked ahead, pushing her trolley as she took in the sights around her.

“She’s probably wondering why St Pacras is so much nicer,” Rose teased.

The couple halted when their daughter did, as she approached the barrier. They walked up behind her and stopped. Rose squeezed her shoulder. 

“Are you ready?” Asked Rose.

Astoria turned and one last bit of anxiety escaped from her. “Will I be ok?” She asked. 

“Absolutely,” Rose replied. “And if you don’t enjoy it, we’ll sort something out.”

Astoria nodded and gripped onto her trolley, reading to run.

“Ready?” Rose asked.

“Wait!” Scorpius said. “I didn’t want to give these to you on the Platform and embarrass you.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bundle of sweets.

“More sweets!” Astoria exclaimed. “My teeth are going to rot by the time I’ve arrived!”

“Your Grandma, my Mum, said that they always help you to make friends,” Scorpius said. “So it will be absolutely worth it.”

“Don’t worry, there’s special sugar fighting toothpaste in your trunk,” Rose whispered into Astoria’s ear. 

Astoria giggled. “I’m going to miss you both,” she said. 

“We’ll miss you more,” Rose said and, together, the family ran at the barrier.

* * *

 

Saying goodbye to Astoria felt like a punch in the stomach: it winded Rose to see her daughter gradually go farther and farther as the Hogwarts Express pulled away. But the pain, thankfully, slowly began to numb.

“I think she’s going to be perfectly fine,” Scorpius murmured into Rose’s ear an hour later. They were standing in Hyde park, facing out onto the Serpentine, as Scorpius wrapped his arms around her. “Did you see the little friend that she made?”

“I agree,” Rose replied, a smile on her face at the recent memory. 

Another first year (a Muggleborn, Rose had noticed, from her parents and her nervous expression) had dropped her bag beside Astoria and spilled its belongings everywhere.  Astoria was quick to help the jittery, black-haired girl in picking up her belongings and offering her a sweet. They boarded the train together and, Rose had seen, enthusiastically chatted away once they could no longer wave at their parents.

“I told you that she would be fine,” Scorpius said.

Rose pinched his arm. “I’m her Mum, of course I’m going to worry! Not as if you didn’t wake up every half hour to check that she was still breathing when she was a newborn.”

“Counted her breaths too,” Scorpius grinned. “Just to be on the safe side.”

“Well, we’ve done alright, haven’t we? That’s one child safely away,” Rose said. “Have you thought about what house she’ll be put into?”

Scorpius stared at the water in-front of him in silence. “I think that Rowena Ravenclaw is coming for her revenge at last,” he said. “Your Mum escaped from her grasp — as did mine, actually. Both of us were academic and Astoria is the same. I don’t see why not.”

“Truthfully, I hope that it’s either Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw. It’ll make things more interesting,” Rose replied. “Gryffindors and Slytherins in this family are boring me now — but, most of all, I just want her to be happy and I know that she will be no matter what house.”

“I share your parental intuition,” Scorpius said happily. “And she’s got one friend already.”

“And I’m sure that she’ll have several more,” Rose said. “And if they’re mean to her… if Uncle Neville tells us that some of them are teasing her or saying rubbish… Merlin help Hogwarts if they don’t promptly deal with it. Merlin help them, Scorpius.” 

Scorpius stared at Rose before bursting out into loud, appreciative and loving laughter. 

“Ok, sorry,” Rose said, grinning at him. “Maybe a bit too fierce?”

“No,” Scorpius said. “I like it.”

_The end_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading :)


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